The Worst Case

This past week had been terrible. Any time he was around Chloe everything was tense and awkward. Pete knew it wasn't a good idea, but it was better than nothing. At least he had saved Clark the agony of trying to tell her about it, or continuing to lie about it. Out of all the secrets Pete knew, Clark was glad that was the one he had let out. It was the least of his worries for Chloe to know about his and Lex's relationship right now.

He'd suffered through his breaks at school today, with Chloe in the Torch, working on his article for this week's paper. They barely spoke and she had kept alternately glaring and looking sympathetic at him. Now Clark was almost afraid of the confrontation when he saw Chloe making her way purposely towards him. "Uh oh," he heard Pete say from his side. They were talking about the day and getting ready to part ways and go home when Chloe came out of the school and spied them.

Clark turned back to his friend and sighed. It was better now than never, he supposed. "I'll see you tomorrow," Clark said and Pete gave a small smile before patting his friend on the shoulder and turned towards the student parking lot.

"Hey," Chloe said, her determination almost melting out of her when she actually got within five feet of Clark. She felt bad for the way she'd acted, or over reacted as it were. Knowing her anger towards Clark for not telling her was partly because it wasn't her that he was in a relationship with.

"Hi," Clark said, shuffling his bag back up onto his shoulder after it threatened to slip off when his posture weakened. He knew she was upset about finding out, but what was he supposed to do? Lex could really get in trouble for it, and even though Chloe was his friend, she also had a big mouth.

It wasn't that he didn't trust her, but sometimes he just never knew. She sighed, and looked up to his face, intent on going through with this. He was her friend and she wanted it to stay that way. "Look, I'm sorry for the way I acted." She had finally come to her senses and realized that it was wrong of her to behave how she did. Understanding how and why Clark could lie to her about it, she was just glad she knew now.

And it wasn't a very good act to conduct if you wanted to be someone's friend, to judge them on who they chose to have a relationship with. "It's okay," Clark said, glad that this wasn't going to be too bad of a conversation, "I understand why you thought the way you did about it. I could have told you, but..." He sighed, "It's just a personal situation, you know? It's not just my decision to tell who I want."

"Yeah," Chloe nodded. "Pete tried to explain that to me but I didn't really listen, I guess." She smiled. "He also told me that he caught you two kissing in the loft."

Clark almost blushed. That had been a very, very awkward night for the three of them. "Yeah," a small chuckle escaped him. He smiled back at her, glad they were alright now.

"It's just going to take a bit to get the hang of it," she said, "But I'm here for you if you need anything, okay?"

"Okay," Clark agreed, smiling at her again. He leaned down to her, reaching his arms around her body, "Thanks, Chloe."

She smiled, her chin over his shoulder, "No problem." Good. This was good. Now she had her friend back, but there was still one more thing.

They both straightened up and smiled, both glad of how things were starting to right themselves around now. "Clark," she started, and he looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to continue. "I'm going to be spending the summer in Metropolis, but seriously, if you ever need anything, just call or email."

"Really?" He didn't really want his friends to be gone, but it looked like he wasn't going to have much time this summer for anything other than his own personal well being. She nodded. "That's cool. I hope you have fun, and I'll definitely keep in touch."

"Awesome," she smiled. Then looking down at her watch, she swore under her breath, "Crap. I have to get home. I'll see you tomorrow, Clark."

"Bye," she said, smiling and waving as she turned and started on her way home.

"Bye, Chloe." He waved and watched her leave the grounds before starting on his own way home, noticing he'd missed the bus. He frowned, wondering if super speed would hurt the baby. Probably not, he'd been doing it before he even knew he was pregnant.

@>*~

It was the middle of July and school was out for the summer. He still had chores to do around the farm, but his parents made sure he didn't over exert himself so as not to cause harm to him or the baby. He still hadn't told Lex about his pregnancy because he was still too nervous and scared about what his lover might say. He hated that whenever Lex asked him how his day was or how he was. Clark would only give a vague answer. He just hoped when Lex returned he wouldn't be too mad.

Clark was in the shower, washing himself of that morning's dirt and grime when he ran his soapy hands along the front of his body. Looking down, he paused, seeing his large belly. He no longer looked like he had swallowed a basketball. Now it looked like he'd swallowed a beach ball. He rolled his eyes at himself. Yeah. He was *so* going to kill Lex when he came home. Resuming his washing he let out a low gasp when his wet hand came into contact with his cock.

Just now realizing that he hadn't had sex in over three months and that he was horny. Yes, he'd masturbate on occasion, but he never really felt like doing it much the last few months. His body had been going through all the changes and he had been depressed about Lex leaving. Now, though, he was suddenly very horny and touching his cock, even if he had been just washing it, he needed release.

Lathering up his hand with more soap, he reached back down and started stroking himself off slowly. It was a bit awkward with the bulge of his child in the way, but he managed. Lifting his right leg up onto the lip of the bathtub, he moved his free hand back behind himself, sticking a finger into his hole, feeling around for his prostate. At first, he didn't notice anything strange as he continued with his dual stimulation until he added another finger.

He frowned, stopping the movement of his hand on his cock as he felt around his hole with his other hand. Odd, he thought, he shouldn't have been able to fit those fingers into his hole so easily. Especially since it had been a while since he had had sex or stuck anything up there. Crinkling his eyebrows in concentration, he slowly added another finger and then another until he was able to place his entire hand up to his wrist inside himself without any type of discomfort.

He blinked, confused and shook his head slightly, mouth dropping open as the situation dawned on him. Something was not right with him back there. He quickly removed his hand and washed the rest of the soap from his body, hoping he was just imagining it since he was still tired. After a moment the thought wouldn't leave him alone and he felt himself again; his hole had stayed open. Glad he had gotten the soap off of his body before he started his self pleasuring. He quickly ended the shower and called out for his mother, frantic with concern.

Martha heard her son's call and ran up the stairs to see what was wrong this time. The sight that greeted her when she ran into the bathroom made her glad Jonathan had gone out earlier to the feed store. Grabbing a towel from where it hung, she rushed over and handed it to her son. "Clark, what's wrong?"

"Mom, there's," he paused when he took the towel from her. "Some... Something wrong with me," he said, panicking. He didn't even realize he had been completely naked when his mother had shown up, and he wrapped the towel around himself.

Martha frowned in concern. "What is it, Clark?"

Clark opened his mouth to blurt out what he found when a fiery blush spread out along his chest and face. He couldn't tell his mother he had been in the middle of masturbating. "Um, well, when I was cleaning myself, I uh, found that my..." He paused, feeling weak with embarrassment, but he had to tell someone, and he was glad it was his mother since he didn't have Lex there to share his findings with. "I noticed that my uh...backside was bigger then it should be."

Martha blinked her eyes and almost bit her lip to keep herself from laughing. This was not a good time to do so. "Well, Clark, you have been putting on a bit of weight recently..."

Clark had a look on his face that screamed, 'huh?' When he realized what she meant, he blushed some more. "No, Mom, not my butt. My, uhm, hole," he finished, wishing the floor would open up for him and swallow him whole.

"Oh," Martha said, blushing herself. She definitely hadn't expected that. "Well, what happened to your, ahem, backside?"

Clark went over to the wall and slumped against it. He had no idea what to really say. He was really starting to hate life. "Well," he began after clearing his throat. "When I had my hand back there to, uh, clean myself, I noticed that it didn't feel right. So, I did some, uhm, exploring and then I noticed it was loose and open."

Martha sat down on the lid of the toilet seat and looked up at Clark. "And this isn't normal for you?" They'd never talked about Clark's private parts, but from when he was young and she was teaching him the basics everything had looked normal.

"Uhm, no. Usually it's just like everyone else's. God, Mom. I don't want it to stay open," Clark said, panicking again.

Martha got up from her seat and moved towards her son, enveloping him in a hug. "Maybe it's part of the pregnancy. None of us are sure how you'll give birth. This may be your body's way of preparing for the upcoming time. Go into your room and check yourself again, if it hasn't gone back to it's normal, uhm, size, then let me know and we'll try to find some way of working this out," she said, backing away from her son and moving towards the door of the bathroom.

"Mom, do you really think it has something to do with my pregnancy?" Clark asked, not quite believing.

Martha smiled sympathetically at her son. "I don't know for sure, but it could be. Just go check and let me know if everything's okay or not."

"Alright, thanks, Mom," Clark said as his mother smiled one last time at him before going back downstairs.

Once his mother was out of sight, Clark finished drying himself off and headed out to his room. When he got there, he took the towel off and once again reached behind himself to check. He exhaled the breath he'd been holding in relief when he found that it had shrunk back down to normal. Moving to sit on his bed, he put his head in his hands and wished he knew more about his species so this type of stuff wouldn't freak him out so badly when it popped up.

@>*~

Back in London and having gotten situated back in their hotel, they went for dinner. The past month had been more like things normally went between the two of them, but that day at the castle's original site had stuck in Lex's brain the entire time. Now that they were back in England, Lionel was actually acting like himself again.

After dinner, Lex picked up the phone from his room and began dialing the numbers internationally to connect the call to the Kent's house. He walked out of his room to the bar for a bottle of water. He bent down and rummaged through the mini fridge. Lionel had heard the touch tone beeps of the phone and frowned. When he heard the clinking of bottles in the mini fridge, he asked, "Who is it that you call so frequently?"

Lex tensed and almost let the bottle slip between his fingers. "It's business, Dad. Just go do whatever you're doing." Lionel had the smarts to wait until after Lex had dialed, so that his son would hate to hang up on whoever he had called. He smirked to himself as he got up from his seat and followed Lex back into his room. Lex was getting progressively angry with every step towards his room that his father took.

Lex sighed and wanted to slam the door in his father's face when Jonathan answered the phone. Damn. Now he had to ask for Clark and Jonathan wouldn't play along with him like Martha would, so Lex was shit out of luck. To Jonathan's questioning greeting, he responded, "It's Lex." Glancing back with a glare to his father, Lex groaned inwardly, knowing he wasn't going to get rid of him so easily.

"Oh, hello, Lex," Jonathan said, a sudden rush of angry paternal instincts kicking in, making him want to sit the man on the other end of the phone down and have a chat with him about responsibility. Clamping down on that urge, he continued, "How are you?"

"I'm alright. Is, uh," another glance back at Lionel. "Is Clark home?"

Jonathan frowned at the irritation in Lex's voice, but let it alone, "Yeah, just a minute." Lex heard a soft thud as the phone was set down and Jonathan walked away to call his son.

Lionel stared unseeingly at his son, his eyebrows pulled together, thinking about why the hell Lex would be calling Clark while he was on a business trip in Europe. Surely the boy wasn't that important to keep up conversation while being overseas; he could wait, couldn't he? Bringing the boy's image to mind, Lionel grinned sadly. Ah, yes. He was a pretty young thing, and that was it. Lex was dating the Kent boy, and the teenager had found a niche in his son's life, calling himself a 'friend'.

When Clark picked up the phone, Lex sighed, sitting down on his bed. God, he didn't want to have the impending conversation with his father. "Lex?" Clark said, happy to have a call from his boyfriend. He'd missed talking to him and was definitely getting tired of the distance between them.

"Can I set the phone down for a second?" Lex asked, unable to really continue talking while his father was glowering over him, wanting to listen in. He didn't wait for an answer, just lowered the phone and placed a hand over it, turning to his father.

Lex glared up at him, "Dad, can you go away for a few minutes? We can discuss this later." His tone was hard as steel and Lionel stood for a minute, pursing his lips before answering.

"Fine." He turned and banged his cane between the doorway, knowing that Lex would start to get a headache from the confrontation and the noise of it. Lex waited until he heard the sound of his father's door shutting before he uncovered the mouth piece of the phone and brought it back up to his ear.

Lex sighed, "Alright," Instantly cheering up at least a bit at just the prospect of simply talking to his lover.

"What was that all about?" Clark asked, frowning into the distance.

"My father," Lex said. "He had some things he wanted me to do, but I told him I was on the phone at the moment." He brought his free hand up to his temple, rubbing small circles into his skin. Oh the conversation with his father was going to be just so fun. Not.

"Oh," Clark sounded dejected. "Well, if you need to do business, I'll understand..." As much as he missed talking to Lex, hearing his voice, if his boyfriend had work to do, he wouldn't keep him.

"No!" Lex said quickly. "I mean, believe me, Love. It can wait." Lex reassured his boyfriend, and only hoped that it would wait a long time.

Clark blinked a few times, trying to clear his eyes of the slight dampness that had sprung to them. "Oh, okay," he said, taking a deep breath. "So, how's stuff going over there?"

"Same shit, different day," Lex sighed, obviously bored with his work there. "But less then a month left before I come home," he sounded more cheerful with that; he really wanted to be home.

"I know. I miss you so much, it's not even funny," Clark said, sniffing back sudden tears of both happiness that it'd all be over soon and sadness at needing to tell Lex that he was going to be a father, but unsure how.

Lex frowned, aware of the change of tone in Clark's voice. "I miss you too, Love. Ask your parents if we can spend a weekend together when I get back. Just the two of us," he looked up to the ceiling absently, thinking. "Maybe dinner, a movie maybe... and then some alone time."

Clark wiped at his tears as they ran down his cheeks. "I'd love that, Lex. I'll be sure to ask them." He felt bad. He just couldn't tell Lex now, especially after planning dinner and what he was sure would be a wonderful night together.

"You alright, Love?" Lex asked, the sniffing definitely made him want to know what was wrong. He hoped the distance between them wasn't getting to Clark.

"Yeah, I'm alright," Clark said, taking another breath to try and steady his voice. "Just got something in my eye."

Lex sighed. He didn't want to upset either of them by pushing it, so he let it go. He only hoped Clark wasn't regretting anything about their relationship. "Just keep thinking that I'll be home soon. I know I am," Lex said, hopefully.

"Oh, I am," Clark agreed, before pausing. It sounded like he'd put a hand over the receiver. Lex heard a muffled, 'one second, Mom!' from Clark's end, before the younger man spoke into the phone again. "I'm sorry, Lex. Mom told me to hurry. We've got some shopping we need to do today. I think their having a sale of some kind and she needed my help. I'll talk to you later?"

"Yeah, Clark, I'll definitely talk to you later. Say hi to your parents for me. I love you."

Clark smiled, wishing he could see his boyfriend, "I will and I love you too, Lex. Always."

"Bye, Love."

"Bye, Lex," Clark said as he hung up the phone.

Lex hung up his end and ran a hand over his scalp. It sucked when he couldn't talk to Clark every single day or for hours on end, but at least Clark had begun emailing him more. Mainly little things about nothing in particular, but those were the best emails he could ever get.

@>*~

It was past midnight when Lionel ventured out of his room again, and Lex watched with his peripheral vision as his father made his way to the couch and sat down. He sighed to himself and waited to see what the old bastard would do now, knowing for all the world that his father wouldn't have dropped the subject of his sexual relations. Turning back to his work, he tried to at least finish the page he was on before having to go deal with Lionel.

Lionel sat himself down on the couch, propping his cane up against the end of it and felt around the coffee table's surface. Searching for the remote to the stereo that he knew was there, he found it and began to play around with them. Eventually he ended up turning some music on, finding the volume and turning it up. Lex sighed and sat up from the table, leaving the work that he was doing now, for later.

"Dad," Lex called over the music, letting his father know he had his son's attention. He sat down in the chair diagonally across from Lionel and waited for the arrogant smirk to fade from his father's face just as the music came down.

Lex knew he wasn't going to be able to concentrate on his work after this, so he might as well get it over with and go to bed, maybe a shower first. He leaned forward in his chair, bracing his elbows on his thighs. He tilted his head slightly to regard his father, clasping his hands together and waited for the older man to speak.

Lionel pursed his lips again and it looked like he was almost trying to hold back a sneer. "So," he began conversationally. "How do they grow 'em down on the farm, Lex?" The question made Lex's jaw clench. His father always did have a problem with his sexual orientation, but he'd never outwardly said anything about it. The elder Luthor was most likely more concerned with another heir after Lex's rule of the empire that was LuthorCorp, in Lex's opinion.

Lionel wasn't angry about Lex's preference for sleeping with the same gender of the species, but he did have a small pebble in his shoe about it being someone of such a lower class than themselves. Someone of that type would more often then not be after the money and power rather than genuinely liking his son for who he was. Lex was by no means unlikable, but it had to be the right kind of person for the job. Someone equally as smart and talented, someone high up in the business world that would understand how Lex worked on a general level. He didn't think his son would have anything in common with a farm boy like that Clark.

Lex knew he didn't have any response that would be good enough for his father, so he remained quiet, letting the silence age between them, waiting for his father's next comment. "I don't want you throwing your future in this corporation away because of a mistake you encounter while seeking out pleasure." Lionel was serious, and it sounded like he actually cared what happened to his son, rather than his company. Oh, the company was important, but it was definitely higher on the list than Lex was.

"Dad..." Lex began, his voice cold as he spoke. "I will not make a mistake. I can do what I think is right, and my love life won't change because you've got a stick up your ass." He kept his eyes locked on his father, almost hoping that if his glare was heated enough, it would stare right through him and leave him a smoldering hole through the head.

Lionel pushed his fists down on either side of him, into the cushions of the couch, and lifted himself up. Shifting over a seat on the sofa, closer to Lex, he reached out towards the chair where his son's voice was emanating from. Lex watched, almost in disgust as his father found his clasped hands and rested his own over top of them. "You are my son, Alexander," he said firmly, with a small pressure cupping Lex's hands, "And I don't want anything to ruin your future."

"The only thing that could ruin my future is you," Lex spat out. He hated to admit it, and he felt his teeth baring down on the inside of his cheek after he spoke, nearing hard enough to draw blood from the soft tissue. His father controlled how soon his reign would be hailed. His father could disown him, or bump up his succession to the head of the company at will. It was his decision when he would stand aside and let his son take over, if ever.

Lionel knew he was taking some sick pleasure in keeping his son on a leash with threats to disown him, to sire another heir, and not to let Lex achieve that standing in the business world without his help. He would give it to him in due time, but his son still had lessons to be learned. He heard Lex sigh and the hands under his pulled away tersely as his son stood up. The tense silence between them lessening with each step Lex took away from his father as he made his way to his room and shut the door behind him. Lionel sighed and reached for his cane.

@>*~

"Are you sure you'll be okay here by yourself?"

Clark looked up from the couch to smile at his parents. "Yeah, I'll be fine," he said, waving them off.

Martha didn't look convinced, but nodded. "Alright then. We'll see you in a few hours," she said as she took hold of her husband's offered arm and the two of them walked back to the kitchen. They still had a few things to get before the arrival of their grandchild. Mostly odds and ends, but they wanted to be sure they had everything.

Clark turned back to watching television, hearing the door shut when his parents left the house. He was only a few months along, but the size of his belly made him look like he was actually about nine months along if he had been a human female. He had been having weird spasms all day long, they felt like normal muscle spasms, but they hadn't hurt so he didn't deem it important to tell his parents about them.

He jumped when he heard a knock on the front door. Quickly grabbing the blanket from off of the back of the couch to cover his belly, he called out, "It's open!"

Pete opened the door and walked into the house at his friend's call. Looking around the kitchen, Pete heard the television's sound coming from the living room. He made his way in there and spotted his friend sprawled along the length of the couch. "Hey, man. How's it going?"

"Pete!" Clark said in shocked happiness. He was relieved that it was Pete, someone who he didn't have to hide from. "How are you? It's been over a month since I saw you last. What's been going on?"

Pete took a seat in the chair across from Clark. "Nothing much, been helping my mother out at the court house as a summer job." Pete leaned forward and lifted the blanket as he looked at the bulge underneath it. "Whoa, you've gotten bigger. You having twins or something?" He asked with a grin.

Clark's eyes went wide. "Oh, god. Don't even joke about that, Pete. I'm just hoping this is normal for my people. I'm not even sure about having one baby let alone two," he said, shuddering at the thought of popping out a litter of babies like he was some kind of dog or something.

"Sorry," Pete said, but he was still smiling. "So, how have you been?"

It took a few minutes of heavy pushing, but Clark finally got himself upright on the couch. "I've been doing pretty well, considering," he said, making a vague gesture at his belly. "I'm half looking forward to finally getting this baby out of me and scared to death of having to take care of it. I know I won't be alone, my parents already said they'd help out."

"Have you told Lex about this yet?" Pete asked as he leaned back in his seat.

Clark sighed and looked down at his belly, picking non-exsistant fluff and lint from the blanket. "No..." He slowly looked back up to his friend, a sad expression on his face. "I don't know how to bring it up. Every time I've emailed him or he's called me, I'd get myself motivated, but then I'd freak at the end and wind up not telling him."

"I don't know what to tell you, man. I..." Pete stopped, looking at his friend in concern when Clark suddenly gasped, gripping the back of the couch. "Clark, what's wrong?"

Clark's other hand had flattened on his belly and he was holding it tight against himself. Panting, he said, "I... I think the baby's coming." He gripped the couch tighter and sliding himself back to lay down on the couch again, crying out as a sudden wave of pain burst out along his lower back.

"*What*!? Now?" Pete shot up from his seat and started on his way to the kitchen, only to turn back and walk back to his friend's side. He began a frantic pace, back and forth, in front of Clark. "Oh, man," he blew out a heavy breath, "I *so* can't believe this. Where are your parents? I can't do this," Pete rambled on, clenching and unclenching his fists as he paced.

"Uh?"

Pete stopped and turned to his friend, raising his eyebrows in horror. "'Uh', what?"

Clark looked up sheepishly, a worried expression plastered on his face as his hair became damp and beads of sweat began to form on his forehead. "I think my water broke," he said, grimacing at the squishy feel of his pants and underwear sticking to his backside.

"Oh, man," Pete groaned, sinking back into the chair and putting his face into his hands. "What are we going to do?"

Clark tried to hold back another cry by biting his lip. Unable to accomplish that, his head jerked back as another wave of pain hit him. "I don't know," he panted, "about you, but..." He unclenched his hand from the back of the couch, bringing it over him to toss the blanket off of him. "I'm about to give birth."

"Here?" Pete squeaked, eyeing his friend in horror.

Clark moaned as another pain hit him. "Not if I can help it," he ground out as he stretched his arm out to Pete. "I need you to help me up. It's bad enough I, uhm, leaked onto my mother's couch. But I don't think she'd appreciate having to get a new one."

Pete moved quickly over to Clark's side and grabbed his hand and arm, lifting his friend up into a sitting position before bracing himself to heave the bigger man from the couch. Pete wrapped an arm around Clark's waist and Clark lifted an arm and settled it around Pete's neck before they made their way slowly away from the couch. "Where to?" Pete asked.

"My room," Clark said, breathless from the pain shooting through him. Before they even made it to the first step, Clark cried out again and his knees buckled. Pete followed Clark down to the floor, pulled by Clark's strength and weight. "Aaahgh!"

"Clark!" Pete cried, shuffling himself out from half under his friend to kneel beside him. "Come on, man, you can't have the baby on the floor," Pete said frantically, trying to get Clark back to his feet.

"I can't..." Clark broke off into breathless pants before he cried out again before it wound back down to helpless panting. "Pete, I can feel it coming. I've gotta get my pants and boxers off fast."

Pete nodded and squashed the fear out of himself to help his friend. He pushed the bottom of Clark's shirt up over his back to expose the elasticized band of the sweat pants. Slipping his fingers underneath it, he slid them down, along with Clark's boxers, to his friend's knees. Clark caught his breath and held it as he lifted one knee, then the other, for Pete to slip his clothes the rest of the way from his legs.

"Uh, towels?" Pete asked, getting up and running back to the kitchen, opening random drawers and cupboards in search of something soft to lay the baby on. Clark kicked his pants and boxers away from his feet and spread his legs a bit at the knees, bracing himself on the second step of the stairs.

He groaned when another shock of pain ran through his system and heard his friend's question. "Second drawer from the left," he ground out. "Beside the dish washer." Pete dodged over to the drawer and pulled it open, grabbing three small towels from it, and then grabbing the scissors from the counter where he'd put them after finding them in another drawer. There was a cord he had to cut or something, right?

Pete cringed at the angry grunt that Clark spat out when he returned to the floor behind his friend, placing the towels between Clark's legs. There was a stringy clear fluid, tinged slightly pink, dangling from Clark's stretched hole and Pete made a face before stepping past Clark's body and running up the stairs to the bathroom. When he came back, Clark tilted his head up to look at him. God, Clark looked like he was in so much pain.

Pete smiled sympathetically and jumped over his friend's head and arms, landing on the floor and kneeling back down beside his friend. He tore off a few squares of tissue and began to wipe away the strand of fluid. He almost gasped when his bare hand came into contact with his friend's hole, when Clark suddenly thrust his body down, putting him in more of a squatted position.

The next sound that came out of Clark was almost near a scream, and Pete winced at the sharp tone. He sat and waited expectantly. He wasn't sure how this was going to work, or how to handle a baby just out of it's mother's womb. Father's womb? Pete shook his head and blinked before his eyes widened. He dared to actually look into Clark's disgustingly wide anus, and what he saw almost startled him. Of course, what other hole was the baby going to come out?

He felt his pulse speed up and the blood rush past his ears, making him nervous as he watched the pale dome of the baby's head still deep inside of his friend's body. Pete stared in awe as it was pushed farther out, in accordance to Clark's groaning pushes.

Clark thought he was going to tear himself in half from the way it felt as the baby shifted through his body. He was sweating and breathing hard, and he shook his head, unable to dislodge the stands of hair that had stuck to his forehead. Blinking his eyes as salty sweat ran into them, he grunted and pushed, trying to hurry the process up and get it over with. He was glad he wasn't trying to do this alone. What would he have done if Pete hadn't stopped by?

Pete was such a good friend. Clark would never forget this. He tried to turn his head around to look at his friend. Pete caught the movement and looked up worriedly into his friend's eyes peering at him over a shoulder. "You're doing great, Pete," Clark bit out, turning his head back and groaning, his body stiffening as another surge of pain wracked his body.

"Me?" Pete let out a breathy laugh, "You're the one who's shitting out a kid, here." Clark coughed, instead of laughed, but they both knew this wasn't the time for jokes or crude humor. Pete raised his eyebrows as the pale head came closer to the outer rim of Clark's hole. Shit. He had to handle the baby, because there was no way Clark could do it himself. Pete was scared; he didn't want to hurt it.

Oh, shit! The head was starting to peek out at him, and as gross as it was, he reached his hands up, making sure he was definitely ready to catch the baby. Clark would never forgive him if he dropped the kid, even if there was the softest surface available for the child to land on underneath. His ears were starting to ring with the blood in his body and the groans coming from his friend. He had tuned most of the noise out, only listening for coherent words from his friend and his own monologue to help him stay as calm as he could. It surprised him when the head came out more, and Pete began to see a little face. His mouth dropped open and his arms felt so heavy, but he cradled the small head in his hands as it made its way out of the slick hole.

Clark sighed loudly when his child's head was out of him, but he knew it wasn't over. He grit his teeth together and hung his head down, unable to hold up its suddenly heavy weight. He couldn't maintain a continuous push, tensing his body to expel the little body inside of him. And the almost sickening squish sound was really getting to him when he stopped to pant and gasp for breath and his hole would want to keep the baby there by tightening itself back around the little person. Alien? He felt like throwing up, like his insides were being pulled out of him along with the baby.

"Keep it up, Clark, it's almost out," Pete said, trying to encourage his friend to keep pushing. He almost panicked when he felt his hands sliding along the baby's head. Keeping one hand underneath, he picked up one of the extra towels off to the side and placed it onto the hand still holding the baby. He continued to watch in awe as little shoulders began to appear.

Clark inhaled a deep breath through his teeth and pushed as hard as he could, trying to free his child from his body. It felt like it was taking forever and he was afraid he'd collapse before he had even finished. Clark groaned louder as he felt his hole stretched impossibly wider as he pushed again. In the back of his mind, he wished it had been his mother to help him with this. Even though he was very glad to have Pete helping him, he wasn't sure if he'd be able to look his friend in the eyes anymore after being exposed so intimately.

Pete tentatively hooked a finger into a little arm pit, pulling as gently as he could to help speed things along. He shifted somewhat to get a better grip on the baby as the little arm came free. Pete continued to pull as Clark pushed, smiling when the other arm came free of its confinement. Two more hard pushes and the baby finally slid out, Pete sighing heavily in relief that it was over.

Clark grimaced as he felt the slippery feel of his child slide out. He leaned his head forward to rest it on the step he had been gripping, making a face as he felt the cord dangling out of him still. His head shot up as he felt his body contract one last time before he felt a big blob come falling unceremoniously out of him. As his breathing returned to normal, he felt the air temperature change around him and a cool feeling wash over him. He slumped down, feeling so much lighter, he breathed deeply before calling to his friend. "Pete?"

Pete made sure to brace the baby's fragile body as much as he could as it freed itself from Clark's body. He lowered it gently onto the towels on the floor and reached for the scissors he'd brought. He wanted to squeeze his eyes shut as he opened the blades and held them on either side of the umbilical cord, but he couldn't bear to think if he closed his eyes and cut the wrong place and hurt either the baby or Clark. He winced when it cut through the flesh, and then shuffled himself back slightly when he saw a big goopy substance push out of Clark's body. It fell to the floor, just narrowly missing the baby's leg. He sighed and then heard a worried voice calling to him.

"I cut the cord," Pete said, and Clark lowered himself to sit on the floor, twisting himself onto his side and looking to his baby lying on his mother's towels on the floor. He let out a stunned breath as he watched Pete wiping the slimy goo from the child's body. He looked to his friend and Pete looked up and gave a small smile before turning his attention back to the squirming little body between them. He reached out tentatively and stroked a gentle hand over the small head, feeling the soft dark hair. "It's a girl," he heard Pete say quietly, but he was captivated by the small eyes that were squeezed shut, and he began to stroke her body the same as his friend to clear the goo from it.

He watched as the tiny mouth opened slightly and Clark frowned when he saw there was more of the slime inside the cavity. He took his index finger and gently wiggled it into the opening and made a scooping motion to clean out the baby's mouth. There was a small cough and Clark and Pete looked up at each other simultaneously and grinned before being startled into looking back down when a loud cry sounded from the baby girl's mouth.

"She's got a set of lungs on her, doesn't she?" Pete asked, smiling back up at his friend.

Clark smiled back. "We need to clean her off some more and then put a diaper and some clothes on her so she doesn't get cold. I don't know if she's like me, like Lex or a combination of both," he said as he gently picked the child up in his arms, and slowly got to his feet. He may be impenetrable against the cold, but Lex wasn't, and he had no idea whether the baby would be or not. "Can you watch her for a moment while I go upstairs and get dressed?"

Pete took the offered child into his arms when he stood up beside Clark. "Of course," he said, smiling down at the baby. "I'll be waiting for you down here."

Clark smiled his thanks and slowly walked up the stairs. Pete sat down on a kitchen chair and cradled the snuffling baby to his chest. Clark returned a few minutes later, coming down the stairs clean and redressed. Pete raised a quizzical eyebrow at him. "I took a quick shower," Clark supplied. Pete nodded and handed the baby back to his friend.

Clark cradled his baby girl in his arms as they made their way into the kitchen and stopped in front of the sink. Clark put the stopper in the drain and waited while the sink filled up with warm water. He'd brought a wash cloth with him from the upstairs bathroom and gently began washing his daughter after removing the soiled towel. He set her down in the water, the back of her head and neck resting against his wrist while her back laid against his palm, holding her up. Pete went over to the closet near the stairs and pulled out the baby's things that he knew were stored there.

Clark placed a kiss onto his daughter's forehead while drying her off when they were finished with bathing her. They got her dressed and left the kitchen and returned to the living room. Pete looked at his friend and frowned. "How you feeling?"

Clark sat down gingerly, hoping his quick healing would kick in soon and smiled up at his friend. "Like I just had a baby," he laughed. Pete joined in and sat down in the chair across from the couch again.

"Want me to get some towels to lay on the couch so you don't get dirty again?" Pete asked, getting up from his chair. Clark nodded and Pete made his way quickly up the stairs, retrieving a couple of towels from the linen closet. A few moments later, he came down the stairs and saw his friend beginning to nod off. "Clark?"

"Hmmm?"

"Here's the towels," Pete said as he unfolded them and placed them along the length of the couch.

Clark smiled tiredly at his friend before looking back down at his daughter. The sun's rays were at an angle to shine into their house, and one was warming most of Clark's body and it brushed brightly across the top of the baby's head. Clark nuzzled his daughter's cheek softly. "She has red hair," he announced, smiling at his friend.

"Yup. Lex definitely won't be able to deny she's his. She looks a lot like him," Pete said, moving to take the baby from out of Clark's arms. "Let me hold her while you get some rest. I'll stay until your parents get back."

Clark had smiled widely when Pete mentioned she looked like Lex, and reluctantly gave up his daughter to Pete. He was really tired and felt his eye lids starting to come down. Settling himself out along the length of the couch, he pillowed his head on his arms and fell asleep in mere seconds.

@>*~

"Looks like Pete stopped by to visit," Martha said as she got out of the truck and made her way towards the rear of the truck.

Jonathan got out of the driver's seat, and met his wife around the back of the truck. "That's good. I don't think Clark would mind the company."

The two of them grabbed the few bags in the bed of the truck and carried their burden with them to the house. Jonathan grabbed hold of the door's handle and held it open for his wife. Martha smiled at him and walked through the doorway, setting the bags onto the floor. She looked around her kitchen with wide eyes at the mess left behind. There was dirty water still in the sink, drawers were left open and a bloody towel on the counter next to the sink.

"Jonathan?" Martha questioned, not sure of what happened while they were out, but definitely worried. Jonathan maneuvered himself in front of his wife as they spread out across the kitchen. Martha gasped at the sight that greeted her. "What happened in here, Jonathan?"

"I don't know," he drawled, shaking his head. "I'll go check upstairs, you search down here." He made his way to the stair case and carefully stepped around the bloody towels and over the broken step. Martha came closer to the bottom step, eyeing the marks on it. They looked almost like finger prints, but why would Clark be holding on there. Her gaze shifted to the mess in front of the stairs, and the towels. It had to be blood, and that strange goop? She had a bad feeling about this...

Martha slowly walked away from the stairs, making her way towards the living room. She sighed in relief when she found both Pete and Clark there. Seeing Clark asleep on the couch, she walked behind the chair that Pete was sitting in. "Pete?" she whispered, startling the teen.

"Mrs. Kent!" He turned around in the chair, his head snapping up to look at her incredulously. "Oh, thank god you're here," Pete whispered, standing up from his seat on the chair. "You would not believe the day we had."

Noticing the bundle in Pete's arms, she raised an eyebrow and looked back at Clark. Martha noted the absence of the familiar bulge that should have been under the blanket. "Pete? Is that...?"

Pete smiled softly at her and looked down to the baby. He gently shifted his arms, and settled the baby in Martha's. "Yeah," Pete nodded, "She was born about an hour ago." He took a moment to stretch his arms out, and remembered the earlier events he'd taken part in. "Sorry about the mess in the kitchen and hallway, but Clark was tired and I had to..."

"Shh, shh," Martha interrupted, cradling the baby in her arms and rocking slowly back and forth so as not to wake the child. "It's not important. What's important is that the three of you are okay." She chanced to take one arm away from the baby to give Pete's shoulder a small squeeze of thanks.

Just then, they heard Jonathan stomp back down the stairs. "He's not up there and there are no signs of anything happening. I..." he stopped abruptly and stared at the scene in front of him. Pete and his wife looked up at him and stared. He stared back and asked, "What's going on?"

"Clark had his baby," Martha said, sniffing delicately and blinking as sudden tears of happiness rolled down her cheeks. She moved swiftly but surely over to her husband to show him her prize. "Say 'hi' to grandpa," she cooed down to the baby as Jonathan reached a large hand up to the child's head, brushing the soft dark red hair that the tiny head was dusted with.

He sidled his arm up to his wife's that was underneath the child and the baby was once again shifted from arm to arm. Jonathan looked up from the bundle in his arms. "Boy or girl?" He asked, looking to Pete and back to his wife.

"Girl," Clark replied sleepily, sitting up a lot easier than before on the couch.

Martha pushed past Pete and over to her son, crouching down to his level. She bent forward and pulled him into a hug. "Clark," she breathed out worriedly. "Are you okay?" She pushed back from him and looked into his eyes, smiling when she made sure he was really okay.

Clark smiled at his mother as she shifted over and sat down beside him on the couch, ignoring the slightly damp towels underneath her. "I'm better now," Clark said, stretching his shoulders a bit and leaning back against the couch. "I don't feel like I gave birth anymore, so I think my body healed itself," he said, leaning himself over and resting his heavy head down onto her shoulder. He had felt so lost without his mother there to help.

Martha watched as Clark's hair fell back onto his forehead, almost tickling his eyelids. She reached a hand up and ran it through his sleep tussled hair, brushing it out of his face before placing a kiss onto his head. "I'm glad you're alright," she said with a small squeeze to his body, truly glad he was alright. "How'd you do it on your own?"

"Pete helped," he said, snuggling a little more into her soft curves.

"Thank you, Pete," Martha smiled brightly up at the young teen, who shifted his feet and looked embarrassed. It was gross and he hoped he could forget the image of his friend, his male friend, naked and giving birth. But all in all he was definitely glad he was here to help and experience the miracle that was birthing a child.

"Clark's my friend, Mrs. Kent, I had to help," he replied, smiling back. Looking at his watch, he cleared his throat. "I need to be getting back soon. Told my mom I'd be over here and back in an hour." He rolled his eyes. It had been more than an hour, "I think I'm late."

"I don't think she'll care once I let her know. Just ask her to give me a call when you get home and I'll explain what happened," Martha said, pulling away from her son, and hearing a slight whine as his pillow was taken away. She stood from the couch, moved to Pete and gave him a big hug. "Thanks again, Pete." Pete hugged her back, smiled one last time and said his good-byes before he left the house.

Jonathan looked up from the baby, he had noted the features the girl had inherited from Lex and he had to admit she was a beautiful little thing. He smiled as he walked over to the couch with his granddaughter resting in his arms and sat down next to his son. He shifted the baby back to Clark when the younger man's hands came up to instinctively cradle her into her father's arms. Jonathan smiled at the picture the two of them presented and lifted an arm and settled it around Clark's shoulders. "You did a fine job, Clark."

Clark looked up at his father's words to see the older man smiling at him. "Thanks, but it was hard to do. I know one thing," he said, looking up at his mother before glancing back at his father, "I definitely don't want anymore any time soon."

Jonathan was about to comment on that, something to do with his lingering distaste for the baby's other father's last name, when said baby woke up and started to cry. Clark looked down at his daughter and began rocking her gently. She calmed down a bit, but she continued to snuffle and whine. Martha had smiled at her son after his comment and quietly left the room to start some coffee brewing. When she came back she went straight to the fussing baby girl to help Clark understand what it was she wanted.

"Looks like she's hungry," Martha said, bringing a hand up to the child's head and brushing a finger through the soft dark hair. She looked up to her son and Clark stared back down at his little girl before shifting his gaze to his mother.

"So, what do we do?" Clark asked. He wanted to make sure his baby got the very best care, but he was at a loss for how to do it. He wasn't a baby when he came to Earth, so his mother didn't have any experience with raising a possibly alien baby from new born to three years old. Martha smiled knowingly and went to the kitchen to warm some milk.

"What are you going to name her?" Jonathan asked when Martha left the room to busy herself in the kitchen. It still bothered him that the baby was part Luthor, even if it was Lex Luthor, but he was getting used to the idea. This child had a clean slate and he was starting to see how a last name and family didn't necessarily mean everyone in the clan was a bad person.

Clark looked down at his squirming daughter. "I'm not sure yet. I have an idea though," he said, looking up when his mother came back into the living room and handed him a bottle.

"Here you go. Hold her at an angle so she won't swallow as much air when she drinks," Martha said as she took a seat in the chair across from her son. "The milk doesn't contain enough vitamins and minerals for her to live off of, but it should hold her over until we can go to the store later and pick up some formula."

Clark took the offered bottle from his mother and did as he was told. He placed the nipple at his daughter's mouth and watched as she opened up and began to suck and drink greedily, her little hands crossed over her chest. He watched amazed as a contented little expression formed and he looked up to his parents with a huge grin on his face.

@>*~

Lex prodded the salad in front of him with his fork, he wasn't even that hungry. It was good for the LuthorCorp image to be here, though, so he sat and enjoyed his meal the best he could. And here, of all places, was a debutante ball for London's finest daughters. Lionel was, so far, behaving himself and not acting strange like he had been on their trip to Scotland, and he was glad for it. Maybe he could just sit back and relax and politely mingle with the people there, spread some good words out for LexCorp while he was at it.

As he stared down at his plate, he saw a slight shadow fall across the table from over his shoulder. He frowned and sighed mentally as he looked up and shifted in his seat to look behind himself. He raised his eyebrows at the petite young girl wearing a shimmering black dress, smiling brightly at him. He turned his head back to the table and looked around at the other guests there; surely she was smiling at one of them instead. He looked back to the girl when he felt her run a hand up his arm. "Hello," she began in what Lex assumed was the sexiest voice she thought she knew how to produce. "I'm Melissa Thorton. Care to dance with me?" she asked, batting her eyes in a blatant attempt to flirt with the young billionaire.

Lex's expression changed and a smooth, polite film slipped over his features as he addressed the girl. She wasn't that tall, so he didn't have to stand or crane his neck to speak up to her. "No, thank you," he said, grasping her offered hand and giving a polite shake. "I'm not up for dancing right now." He hoped his dismissal was enough to get her to go away as he turned back to his dinner and looked to his father out the corner of his eye; he had been listening in, from the look on his face.

"Aw," she pouted prettily, Lex assumed she thought he was trying to play hard to get. "This is a ball," she gestured to the room at large and a piece of long dark hair slipped over her shoulder. "Everyone wants to dance," she said, a pathetic attempt at a seductive gaze, tugging on his arm to get him to go with her.

Before Lex could say anything else to the young woman, Lionel sat up straight in his chair and interrupted. "Excuse me, Miss Thorton. I do believe my son said he didn't want to dance. So, if I were you, I'd take my obnoxious self away and go back to my daddy," Lionel all but growled at the girl, letting a sneer creep up onto his lips in the girl's direction.

Melissa glared heatedly at Lionel, her spoiled rich baby becoming offended, before taking off in a huff. Lex turned an indignant look at his father. "Dad, I'm a big boy. I think I could have taken care of the situation on my own without your help," Lex observed his father and went back to his dinner. He shook his head to himself. Well, apparently Lionel wasn't back to his old self yet. Lionel didn't say anything, just reached blindly for his glass of wine with a decidedly irritated look on his face.

Almost less than a minute later, Melissa returned to their table with a beefy looking older man following behind her. "Excuse me, Mr. Luthor," the man said as he reached their table.

"Yes?" Both Luthors said at the same time. Lex threw a quick and amused smirk at his father. In the castle was one thing, but generally in the business world *Mr. Luthor* means Lionel, unless he's not in the room. Lex turned back to the man and watched his father wait for the voice to speak again, in order to discern its location.

The man turned a raised brow to his daughter after seeing the look on the two men's faces and she leaned in and whispered something to him. "I meant you, sir," the man said, looking at Lionel.

Lionel sighed as he pulled back from the table slightly. "If you haven't noticed, mister...?"

"Thorton, George Thorton." Lex held back an outright superior smirk at the man. He wasn't all he thought he was. Mostly just running under other more independent businessmen and being passed off as someone of importance by his arrogant nature. Sure, he'd made it far doing what he does, but it doesn't mean he could handle a major business problem. Lex looked to his father and left a calculating look on his face. Perhaps he should look into Mr. Thorton's projects.

"Mr. Thorton, I'm blind," he said rather bluntly. "I have no idea to whom you were directly addressing. Now," he sat back in his chair and threaded his fingers together over his stomach, "Exactly what can I do for you?" Lionel asked as he stared unseeingly in the direction of Mr. Thorton's voice.

"Well, sir," Mr. Thorton began, nervously looking at Lionel. The elder Luthor's eerie eyes stared, through the dark shades covering them, towards him. "My daughter here tells me that you insulted her..."

"Ah, yes," Lionel interrupted, smirking towards the sound of the other man's voice. "Indeed I did. You see, Mr. Thorton, your daughter was harassing my son and continued to do so even after he told her he was not interested."

George cleared his throat tentatively before continuing on. "I understand that, Mr. Luthor, but there was no reason to insult anyone here." He had heard about Lionel Luthor and he definitely didn't want to get involved in something horrible for business with the man.

"Alright, alright," Lionel held up a hand and waved it dismissively at George. "My apologies." Lionel lifted his other hand to join the first and gave a friendly gesture. Lex quirked an eyebrow at his father, amused. He didn't buy it for a minute, but at least his father was defending, or standing up for him, in some way.

"It's quite alright." Lex saw the girl glare at her father for not making a big deal out of the insult that had been directed at her. Prissy little bitch. "Thank you and I'm sorry for disturbing your evening," George continued and turned to Lex. Lex returned the polite nod and Mr. Thorton left their table with an angry daughter nagging him all the way until they were out of sight.

Lex sighed as he turned back to the table, facing his father. "Dad..." Lex shook his head. Lionel had a rather condescending look on his face and Lex sighed again, knowing it would be pointless to argue with him about it, before excusing himself. He actually did have to use the facilities and he made his way directly there, without too much mingling and absent gossip being forced upon him.

He lingered in the crowd a bit more on his way back to the table to eye his father and make sure Lionel was behaving himself. When his father's seat was in range, he swore under his breath and made his way there hurriedly, hoping it was a mistake on his part and it was the wrong table. He clenched his jaw and felt a headache coming on as he groaned inwardly and tried to nonchalantly grab a drink from a waiter and mill around in an attempt to find his father.

Lex cringed when he felt a hand press against him and slide around his body. He turned to find Melissa looking a cross between down right pissed off, and still determined to get him into her panties. With a lame excuse for having to make his way to the bathroom, smiling through her pleading and telling her he'd changed his mind; sure, he'd dance. He wished he'd never come to this damn ball to begin with now as he made his way through the crowd and away from the girl. He should have just told her to bugger off, but he didn't want her to do something stupid, like run and cry on someone's shoulder that Lex was mean to her. That wouldn't be good for the image.

Lex stopped and watched from where she couldn't see him, and saw her go straight to her father. Apparently, from the looks on their faces, she had seen through his ploy and was whining to daddy again. Lex started to hear his father's raised voice filtering through to him, and he rushed over to the center of the room. He set his drink down quickly on the table, and splashed a bit onto his hand. He turned to Mr. Thorton again. You stupid idiot, Lionel, couldn't you have let it go?

Lionel had deliberately waited until Lex was out of the room and unable to see him, or stop him, to get up and seek out the other man. Lex knew that and that his father more not than usually could barely stop himself from doing something selfish and feeling him and his company were invulnerable. Lex shook his head at his father and George saw the obvious way that Lex was going to go about this.

"I'm sorry," Lex said, as he tried to surreptitiously grab his father by the arm, by his elbow and led him out of the room. Lionel squawked indignantly for a few feet before Lex tightened his fingers, pinching into a pressure point and feeling satisfied at the wince his father made.

After they'd actually exited the entire building, the cool night air hit Lex in the face and he breathed in, wanting to just freeze up and blow away like snow to nothing so he didn't have to deal with Lionel.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Lionel snapped when he had tapped out his surroundings, noting the stairs to his far left as to not fall down them and make an ass of himself.

"Me?" Lex shouted back, "You were the one who was making a scene!" Lionel had pursed his lips and crossed his arms, looking almost like a pouty spoiled brat who didn't get to play with his favorite toy in lieu of his bed time. Lex was about to continue and make his father see the major mistake he was making by ruining the Luthor name more than it already was, when he heard crunching footsteps on the dry fall leaves coming up to them.

Lex swirled around and looked straight into the valet's eyes. The young man felt like he should run away, like he was intruding and the menacing look that the bald one was giving him almost made his hands shake. Lex's expression was tamed when he realized the frightened look on the man's face and took on a more amiable stance. He tilted his head slightly, obviously expecting a question from the attendant.

"W-would you like your car to be brought around?" He asked shyly, almost hunching in on himself. Lex shot a look back to his father and then down at their jackets he'd roughly snatched from the coat room, and asked for the car. He couldn't go back into that room right now, not even if he did stand on his own two feet; after all these years he was still embarrassed by his father.

@>*~