It was early the next day when Clark ran into town to meet Chloe and Pete at the Beanery. One of the few benefits about his abilities was his incredible speed, which made the five mile trip into town much easier without borrowing his dad’s car. Clark loved to run; letting himself go and feeling the wind get left behind him. He’d pass cars on the roads; swift blurs of color to him. People would stop and listen, feeling the force of his passing and perhaps think he was nothing more than a strong breeze. He loved it; the freedom he found in using his powers sometimes. Sometimes it felt that he could run so fast he would leave the world behind him one of these days, and he would look down, and there would be nothing underneath his feet but blue skies and clouds. But that was never going to happen, he always realized, coming back down to earth. He’d never be that free of it all.

Clark slowed down inside a field close to town. It was a gradual process, once he’d come to a dead stop and the sheer force of the wind behind him had kicked up a minor tornado. While the dust settled, Clark walked out of the field and past the car dealership. All around him, Smallville shopkeepers were sweeping off their sidewalks and hanging signs in windows. Not many people were on the street. Clark walked past the Talon and glanced in quickly to see if Lana was there. The building was dark though and so, disappointed, he went on to the Beanery.

The Beanery was surprisingly full for a Sunday morning. People were gathered around newspapers, eating bagels and muffins, while sipping away at coffees and the like. In their usual seat by the window, Chloe and Pete waved him over. “Hey guys,” Clark said sitting down, “what’s with all the business today? Normally it’s dead here about this time.”

“I guess everyone wants to talk about the news last night,” Pete said, taking a bite out of a doughnut. “Wahant tu till ussabot et?” he mumbled through a mouthful.

“Nice,” Chloe said. Clark laughed as Pete took a quick drink of coffee and swallowed.

“I said, ‘Want to tell us about it?’” he repeated.

Clark looked at him, confused and then shrugged. “What do you mean? What happened?”

“You don’t know?” Chloe asked him. “I thought that it was you. I mean for someone who insists there’s nothing weird going on in this town, you seem to be in the middle of it every time,” Chloe pointed out, her eyes narrowing. “Especially when it deals with Lana.”

Getting nervous, Clark tried to laugh it off. Chloe Sullivan was not the person he wanted getting curious about his life. She’d already come dangerously close to his secret in the past, but he’d always managed to put her off the track before. He didn’t want to get her started again, especially when he hadn’t even done anything. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. After the circus, I had to help my dad fix the tractor until practically midnight. Now what is this about Lana?”

Chloe and Pete looked at each other, and then Pete started to explain. “Lana surprised two guys trying to break into her car last night.”

“What!” Clark yelled, making everyone in the Beanery turn around and stare. Continuing much lower, he asked quickly, “Is she alright? What happened?”

“She’s alright,” Chloe assured him. “Before they could grab her, someone arrived on the scene and saved her. She said that he beat the first one up without even breaking a sweat.”

“Then he followed the other one all the way across town and nailed him too,” Pete said excitedly. “Can you believe that? He’s like, a hero or something.”

“Yeah,” Clark said slowly, “I guess you’re right.”

“The best part is,” Chloe, said, “Lana didn’t even get his name. He’s a mystery; everyone wants to know who this guy is. Can you imagine the kind of story I’d get if I could interview him? I mean, it could be the front page of the Inquisitor, or even the Daily Planet,” Chloe said, here eyes going wide as she imagined it.

“Uh, earth to Chloe,” Clark said, trying to her attention. “The reason he’s a mystery is because no one knows who he is. How are you supposed to find him?”

“Forget it Clark,” Pete laughed. “She’s off in Chloe Sullivan, ace reporter, lala land. Remember when she was seven and she tried to stay up all night to get an interview with Santa Claus?” Chloe gave him a look filled with daggers and Pete flinched back, pretending to protect his head with his arms. “Mercy, mercy,” he pleaded as Clark laughed at both of them. “C’mon, Chloe,” Pete said, “you don’t expect him to just walk into the Beanery and sit down next to you, do you?”

“I take it you’re talking about our mysterious hero,” someone said behind them. Clark turned around to see Lex with another young man who looked oddly familiar. “I was just saying that this was just what Smallville needed, a guardian angel. Mind if we join you?” he asked.

“Sure,” Chloe said and scouted over next to Pete. Lex sat down next to Clark and after a moment’s pause, his friend sat down next to Pete. Clark stared at him, trying to think where he’d seen him before.

“I’d like to introduce you to… an old friend,” Lex said to everyone. “Bruce, this is Pete Ross and Chloe Sullivan, you local paranormal enthusiast and fledgling-investigative reporter. I’m sure you know the type.” Bruce smiled one-sidedly and rolled his eyes.

“Oh yes,” he agreed, his voice a pleasant baritone. “Sometime it seems like they’re living in the trunk of my car. I can’t so much roll it over without a swarm of them asking me what I was on.” Chloe went red around her ears and busied herself taking a sip of coffee.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

“Funny you should mention car accidents,” Lex said quietly. “Here’s the guy I was telling you about back at the house. Bruce, meet Clark Kent. Clark meet Bruce Wayne,” he said.

Clark put his hand out and Bruce took it, giving him a bored shake. Before he let go though, Clark suddenly remembered where he knew Bruce. “Tom?” he said, stunned. Bruce looked pained and let go of his hand. Lex smiled and rubbed his scalp quietly. “You’re Tom, from the circus aren’t you?” Clark asked. Chloe and Pete stared at him, and then they lit up.

“Oh yeah,” Pete said, “We saw your show. You were great.”

“Wait a minute,” Chloe said. “Bruce Wayne? You’re really Bruce Wayne, from Gotham?”

“What do you mean?” Clark asked her.

“Oh, you’re such a lump!” she said and slouched down in her seat, staring at Bruce. “You don’t know who Bruce Wayne is?”

“He’s the guy getting swiftly embarrassed in front of you,” Bruce said quietly and shook his head.

“Don’t sell yourself short, Bruce,” Lex joked. “I certainly wouldn’t. You practically own half of Gotham; in fact, you’re almost as rich as me.”

“True,” Bruce admitted, “but I don’t have that nifty Lexcorp logo backing me up. All my money’s just wasting away; piling up interest. I swear, I couldn’t burn through it with a flamethrower.”

“I can’t imagine,” Pete said slowly. “If you’re so rich, why are you working in a circus?”

“That’s the question of the hour, isn’t it Bruce?” Lex commented. “I don’t think you ever gave me a straight answer either.”

“It’s not that complicated, Lex,” Bruce laughed. “School’s fun, but I just got bored of it after my fifth try. So I decided to take a break and do something I’d always wanted to do since I was a kid; run off to the circus. I loaf around mostly, do odd jobs and help out with some of the acts. It’s not too bad, but they expect you to work a lot. To tell you the truth, I think I’m getting pretty sick of it. I might just be in the mood for a change.”

“Well,” Lex laughed, “I’m glad I made you that offer then. But if you’re looking for excitement, you came to the wrong place.”

“I don’t know about that,” Clark said. “I’m finding it more and more interesting here everyday.”

“Ah, see,” Chloe, said, “if Clark Kent’s finds things interesting, you know something’s really in the air.”

“C’mon, Chloe,” Clark said, rolling his eyes. “Am I really that bad?”

“You have to ask?” she said, staring at him. “Every time I warn everyone that something’s up, you’re the first one to try and find a rational explanation for things. A little trust in your friend wouldn’t hurt, you know. Besides, I don’t know how you can ignore all the strange stuff that happens around here.”

“Now when have I not trusted you?” Clark asked. Chloe’s comment had landed a little close to home. He didn’t trust his friends with his greatest secrets, not yet at least. “And the strange stuff, yeah sure, some things happen, but not that much.”

“Oh really? Let me count the ways,” she said and started to tick them off on her fingers. “We have our local, but not so average, Smallville High students and faculty, ranging from Bug boy, the coach who tried to mentally barbeque me, Sasha’s little bid to be queen bee, Sean ‘Ice Boy’ Devlin, and then my personal favorite, my telekinetic, psychotic, ex-boyfriend. Then we have all the weirdness around town; that weird flower that made Pete shoot Lex, that salesman guy who made me kiss you, and let’s not forget that FUN time I was kidnapped and buried alive, huh?”

“You shot Lex?” Bruce looked at Pete.

“It wasn’t my fault,” Pete said at once.

“It’s a long story,” Lex admitted.

“I feel like I’m missing something here,” Bruce said dryly. “You get some interesting people around these parts?”

“It’s not the people,” Pete said, “it’s just that things seem to happen here.” Clark nodded and stared down at his muffin. No one else but his parent’s knew that his arrival had also brought the meteor rocks that had changed Smallville forever. They didn’t know if it was radiation or some strange property of the rocks, but they seemed to alter anything they touched, and never for the best. If that wasn’t enough, they had a deadly effect on Clark. Simply being near one of the stones, no matter how small, weakened him severely. Clark had always felt responsible for all the misfortune that he’d brought to this town, and had vowed to use his abilities to help it.

“Things happen here?” Bruce asked, lifting an eyebrow. “Hmph,” he said cryptically and looked off in the distance. Clark glanced at him, and noticed something. Bruce was sitting bent over, relaxed and slouched over comfortably, but when he’d been at the circus, he’d been all business, tense and able. He didn’t even look that big now, he though, sitting down hunched over.

Suddenly Lex’s phone went off and he snatched it off his belt quickly. “Sorry, I’m expecting this,” he apologized to everyone. He bent over in the aisle and started to speak in low tones. Bruce hummed to himself and towed with a spoon on the table. Chloe and Pete both sipped their coffee and waited patiently. Clark listened to Lex on the phone, not because he was really interested, but because his hearing was so sharp he couldn’t help but not hear.

“You’ve installed all the new gear?” Lex asked quietly.

“Yes,” a woman’s voice answered, sleek and sure. “Everything’s been set up for the research teams to start.”

“You’re sure Cadmus labs we’ll be up to speed in the next few weeks?”

“Positive, but you’re father is sure to note all the expenditures…”

“I might have found a way around that,” Lex said. “I’ll be back in a few minutes to take care of a few things. Get everything up and running and then start up on the testing we talked about. I’ll expect a status report tomorrow.” Clark tried to think where he’d heard the name Cadmus before when he heard another voice by the entrance. A very familiar female voice.

Clark looked up quickly as Lana Lang talked with a waitress near the door. All his senses, superhuman or not, seemed to be both dulled and sharpened whenever she came near him. Lana lived only a mile from the Kents, but lived much closer to Clark’s heart. She was his first and only crush; the girl he couldn’t get out of his head. He wished one day he could run his fingers through her long, raven colored hair and stare into her almond shaped eyes forever. When he was around her, any amount of time seemed like forever.

“Sorry guys,” Clark said and climbed out of seat. Chloe and Pete smiled knowingly at each other while Bruce stared blankly at him. Lex moved out into the aisle, still talking intently on the phone. Clark walked over to where Lana was standing, trying to think of what to say. Can’t sound like a dork, he told himself. Can’t sound like a dork. Can’t sound like a dork.

“Lana, are you all right?” he asked her quickly. She blinked at him while her friend started to laugh behind a menu. Swift, he told himself and tried again. “I mean, I heard about what happened and I was worried.”

“Thanks, Clark,” she said, smiling at him kindly. “I don’t know what to think. I was walking to my car when I saw those two guys, and then one of them had a knife and I honestly thought I was going to die. And then, out of nowhere, this guy shows up, saves me, and disappears into thin air. Can you imagine how you’d feel if that happened?”

“Oh, I don’t know,” Clark said, a little nonplussed. Someone touched his shoulder and Clark turned around to see Lex.

“Sorry, but we’ve got to get going,” he said. “Something came up at the plant and I’m needed. I’m just going to drop Bruce off at the circus on the way back. Oh Lana,” he said, noticing her, “I heard about your little adventure last night. I’m a little surprised it wasn’t Clark there to help you.” Lana didn’t answer him; she was staring past his shoulders to Bruce, her eyes wide open in shock. Bruce smiled back at her and winked. Clark looked back and forth from Lana to Bruce, wondering what was going on. Lex didn’t notice Lana staring and walked past her. Bruce nodded to Lana and followed him out.

“Lana,” Clark said, “you’re scaring me.” She stared out the window as the two walked to Lex’s Porsche. “Lana?” Clark said again, louder. He snapped his fingers in front of her eyes and she blinked suddenly. “Are you still with us?”

“Who was that with Lex?” Lana demanded, grabbing Clark’s arm tightly. Now it was his turn to stare. “Do you know his name? Who was he?”

“That was his friend, Bruce Wayne,” Clark said slowly.

“Oh my god,” Lana breathed, letting go of his arm and covering her mouth. “Bruce Wayne, from Gotham?”

“Why does everyone know him?” Clark asked irritably.

“God, he’s even more handsome in daylight,” Lana murmured, making Clark jump. “I mean,” she said, catching herself, “he looks different.” Clark stared at her dumbly. She grabbed his arm again and said excitedly, “He’s the one from last night; the one who rescued me. And he’s staying here in Smallville? Can you introduce me to him? Well, we’ve met before, but you know what I mean. How do you know him? Could you get him to call me or something?” she asked him eagerly.

Clark stared out the window, truly and deeply hating Bruce Wayne.