title: Down the Rabbit Hole

series: A New Destiny

sequel to: Lost, Found, Searching, Retrace, Dark, Darker, Darkest

rating: NC17

pairing: Clark/Lex

spoilers: everything

author: nancy

archive: sure! just let me know!

feedback: gratefully welcomed!

summary: Lex finds a way to get the red Kryptonite from Clark and they all suffer from the withdrawal.

warnings: bad language, sex, violence and angst.

disclaimers: not mine, never will be, not making any money from this. honest!

notes: thanks to Dot who suggested the whole withdrawal thing! sorry it took so long, but man, does it suck when your file gets corrupted and you have to start all freakin' over again, or what? and it's a little shorter than usual, but that's where the story wanted to stop, so that's where I stopped. *grin*

Down The Rabbit Hole

by Nancy

It was amazing what almost killing yourself could do to change your perspective.

When Lex left the penthouse, his tail almost literally between his legs, a complete sense of failure and depression dogged him. He went to the Porsche automatically and got in, tearing out of the

underground parking lot without even looking to see if it was clear. He made it to the highway without a second thought, not caring or noticing where he was going, just shifting up and keeping his foot to the gas until it climbed...75...85...90...95mph.

This time of night, the highway was deserted, and with the clear weather, Lex didn't have to think about anything…until he came up too fast on an 18-wheeler and startled the driver. The big rig's

brakes flashed on and it swerved. Too late, Lex saw that there was nowhere to go, that the vehicle was across all three lanes of traffic. Heart pounding, breath held, Lex nudged the steering wheel

just a bit and went directly under the truck, smelling exhaust and burning rubber as he passed underneath.

He kept driving, pulse racing as he looked in the rear-view mirror, relieved to see the truck at a complete stop with no damage. The driver's door opened and the man got out, waving madly at Lex's car, but he was just a speck by the time that happened.

Not taking a chance on meeting up with a cop, Lex downshifted and pulled off at the next exit. There was a deserted gas station and he pulled in, parking in the middle of the empty lot. The thrill through his body was a combination of nausea and adrenaline and when he got out of the Porsche, Lex was shaking with the excitement.

He looked up at the sky and shouted, "Go ahead! Try and kill me again! I fucking *dare* you!"

No bolt of lightening and the earth didn't open up to swallow him, so Lex laughed, even if the edge of hysteria was lent to it. He felt more alive and more himself than he had in months. Since the shooting, basically.

One thing he'd never been accused of, and there had been countless, vituperative accusations over the years, was cowardice. He was no meek soul to just slink off into oblivion at a seemingly insurmountable obstacle. No fucking way. He was his father's son, a Luthor God damn it, too much so at times.

Defeat was not something to which he admitted. Clark was his and he was going to find a way to get him back or kill them both trying.

Still chuckling breathlessly, he leaned against the Porsche and pulled out his cell phone.

Martha's sleepy voice answered with, "Clark?"

"No, Martha, it's Lex."

"Lex? What's wrong?"

Thinking about the frightening and ruthless Clark back at the penthouse by now, Lex hesitated. "Has Clark been to see you tonight?"

"No, why? What's going on?" Martha demanded, awake now.

"I'll be at the farm in about an hour and explain everything then. In case Clark shows up, well, he's not really himself, though I don't know what happened," Lex explained. "He's...aggressive and, well, mean."

"Oh no."

Lex's gaze narrowed on a pothole as he realized that Martha sounded worried, but not surprised. Forcing himself to check his anger at what was obviously something known to his in-laws, but not himself, Lex repeated, "I'll be there in about an hour."

"We'll be up. Drive safely, Lex."

Lex laughed sharply as he hung up. Drive safely. Sure.

* * * *

Glaring at Martha and Jonathan equally, Lex demanded, "You don't think that maybe this was something I should have known about!?"

With a guilty look, Jonathan answered, "We thought all the red Kryptonite had been destroyed, that there was no need to even bring it up."

Lex took a deep breath, struggling to contain his anger. He could see, from their point of view, the truth of that. They were very down to earth people, despite their alien son and unusual daughter. If the danger was gone, then why dwell on it? Teeth grinding in frustration, Lex allowed, "Fine. But when this is over, we are all going to sit down and have a nice, long chat entitled, `Everything I need to know about having an alien lover.'"

They both nodded and Martha opened her mouth to speak, but Elizabeth came floating downstairs just then. Lex shook his head at the sight, wondering when in his life that sort of thing had become commonplace and why he was so accepting of it. Though, really, he knew why. He'd

put up with anything for Clark, even accept it as normal.

She wasn't flying, not like Clark flew, but was somehow pushing off against the floor mentally. Or, as near as he'd been able to determine anyhow. Whenever he asked about it, she just giggled and picked him up with her mind to demonstrate instead of explain. She dropped onto his lap and he grunted at the impact, but smiled at her. "Shouldn't you be sleeping, Beth?"

Her smile faded as she looked into his eyes and then her lower lip began to tremble. Her fingers pulled at his shirt, revealing the bruises around his neck to the elder Kents and provoking gasps of horror from them both. Lex was too busy trying to soothe Beth to deal with them, though, knowing that the girl must have picked up what had happened directly from his mind. "It's okay, Beth, Clark's going to be fine. We're going to make him better."

"God, Lex, Clark did that do you?" Martha exclaimed, getting up and crossing to him. As she sat on the couch, she demanded, "What haven't you told us?"

The threat of complete submission was not something that Lex intended to reveal. Ever. To anyone. They were looking for something though, so he grimaced and raised his shirt, turning his back to them. "I haven't actually had time to look in the mirror. How bad is it?"

Gentle fingers trailed over the sore areas and Martha answered, "You're going to be colorful for a long time. I can't believe that Clark would do this! Not even with red Kryptonite involved!"

Dry, Lex pointed out, "Well, I didn't do it to myself."

"Of course not," Jonathan agreed.

Letting his shirt fall back down, Lex leaned back carefully against the sofa cushions. "So. What can we do?"

"Both times this happened, once the red meteor was taken away, Clark went back to himself," Jonathan said slowly.

"Both times?" Lex asked, his voice deadly and quiet.

Jonathan flushed and nodded. "The first time was a school ring. The second time, well, Pete gave him a chunk of the rock because he and Chloe were hyped up on that insect adrenaline thing."

Lex's mind flashed back to Clark's behavior at the time and everything suddenly made sense. It had been the first time that he'd seen Clark as a sexual being. The younger man had positively exuded confident sexuality and it had completely thrown Lex at the time. So much so that he'd had to look Clark over head to toe. More than once. The barely veiled, slightly insulting comments about driving the Ferrari off the road...it all fit.

Forcing himself back to the matter at hand, Lex repeated, "We are definitely going to talk when all this is over. How did you get the meteor from him back then?"

"We tricked him," Jonathan admitted.

Martha nodded and added, "We used the green Kryptonite to weaken him and destroyed the red meteor."

"So we just have to do the same again," Lex pointed out.

"But how?" Martha questioned, practically. "He can fly away the moment he senses the green Kryptonite. He couldn't fly the last time this happened."

Thoughtful, Lex mused, "And the longer it stays with him, the worse he gets, right? It could even become permanent after a certain amount of time."

Jonathan countered sharply, "We don't know that!"

Lex met his stare and didn't waver. "I know it's not something that you want to think about, but we have to take in all possibilities. Including the one that none of us wants to think about."

Hands clenched together, Martha whispered, "If it becomes permanent, what do we do?"

Nodding, Lex agreed, "We can't let Clark dominate the world, and mad like he is, that's exactly what he would do. We're the only ones who know how to stop him, if it comes to that."

Elizabeth whimpered and pressed her face against Lex's stomach. He half-smiled at her, rubbing her back softly. If only they could immobilize Clark long enough to search him and... Eyes widening, Lex straightened Beth up and asked, "Beth, do you want to help Clark?"

The toddler nodded seriously.

"Can you play a trick on him? Like you do to me? Can you pick him up and hold him still so that he can't move, not even a little bit?" Lex questioned.

Elizabeth's face scrunched up, then she nodded emphatically and answered, "Yes!"

"Are you sure? This is very important, Beth," Lex cautioned.

"Yes!" she repeated stubbornly. "I can!"

God, he loved precociously intelligent children with superpowers! Grinning like a fiend, Lex looked back at Martha and Jonathan, who both looked about to protest. He preempted them with, "There's no other choice. We go back to the penthouse with Elizabeth and Kryptonite. When Clark comes back, she'll hold him still long enough for the meteor to incapacitate him. Then we search him for the red stone and take it away."

The parents were obviously torn. Using one child against the other went against every grain they had, Lex could see. Firmly, he repeated, "There is no choice. It's that or let Clark stay mad and

deal with the consequences of permanency."

Reluctant but accepting, Martha and Jonathan nodded.

* * * *

Clark looked around the empty penthouse, dissatisfied. He'd been hoping that Lex would stick around, though he hadn't really expected it. That was okay, though, because there wasn't anywhere that Lex could go that Clark couldn't find him. Especially not now that he knew about the little retreat in Ireland. And he would find Lex. Clark would track him down and show Lex just how wrong he'd been to run out like he had.

A rattling noise came from the bedroom and Clark frowned, moving towards it and using his vision as he did so. The x-ray didn't reveal anything, but the sound echoed again, so he kept going forward. Peering into the room, he didn't find the source and moved closer. He was most of the way inside when a huge yellow snake slithered across the floor towards him.

Reacting instinctively, Clark jumped back with a shout of fear. The snake continued towards him and he swore at himself for forgetting that the thing couldn't hurt him. Shaking his head, Clark

tentatively stood his ground as the snake slid up his leg. He gripped its neck and it hissed at him. Grinning now, Clark muttered, "Dumb snake."

The serpent wrapped around his legs, effectively hobbling him. He grimaced and slowly pulled his legs apart to loose it. Or, he tried. Frowning when he couldn't dislodge the snake, Clark pushed his legs apart harder, but had no success. The snake hissed again and sunk its fangs into his arm, pain slicing through him.

Shocked, wondering if it was some kind of mutant snake, Clark began to struggle in earnest. The only thing that accomplished was tipping him over to land flat on his back. His head crashed into the floor, knocking him senseless for a few moments. When the darkness faded, the snake was gone and Clark was alone again.

"What the hell?"

His arm had no puncture marks from the fangs.

Feeling like he'd fallen down the rabbit hole and somehow blundered into Wonderland, Clark got to his feet and quickly left the bedroom. He reached the living room and stopped in shock.

Whitney was sitting on the couch watching television.

The young man was exactly as he'd been when he'd died, complete with military gear and clothes. He was lounging easily on the sofa and using the remote to flip through the stations. Looking back at Clark, he grinned and said, "Hey, Kent. I can't believe you have all these channels and there's still nothing on."

Clark had no idea what to say.

"So you're still looking after Lana, huh? That's cool," Whitney continued. "Shoving her at that poet was a stroke of genius. They probably won't even make first base after the wedding. Unlike that sidekick of Wayne's. He was all over her at the party. Hey, where is the invalid, anyhow?"

Was he really talking to Whitney's ghost? No. There was no chance. Clark closed his eyes and shook his head, but when he reopened them, Whitney was still there, grinning at him. Only, the flesh started decaying and peeling away to reveal the skeleton beneath.

"You really should watch out for him, Clark. Luthor's a tricky guy, you know," Whitney warned, standing. The skin on his face fell to the floor with a wet, gross splat and his jaw was revealed.

Clark backed away as the rotting soldier strode towards him, flesh dropping away with every step. Unfortunately, he hit the wall and there was nowhere else to go when Whitney's cold, clammy hand gripped his throat.

"What's the matter, Clark? Don't you like seeing an old buddy?" Whitney hissed, tightening his hold around Clark's throat and shoving him up the wall so that his feet dangled.

Clawing at the mostly-skeletal and completely immovable hand that held him, Clark struggled to get free, kicking out with his legs. The impact did nothing to the zombie and the rest of Whitney's face dissolved as he said, "Always did say that you fight like a girl, Kent."

With that, Whitney tossed Clark across the room to crash into the opposite wall, cracking the wall with the impact. Groaning in pain and fear, Clark stayed huddled where he was, arms over his head, waiting for the next attack. When nothing else happened, he peered out to see Elizabeth standing solemnly in front of him. The next instant, he was floating a few feet above the ground and couldn't move, no matter how much he struggled.

An all-too-familiar ache surged through him, going right through his skin into his bones and setting up residence. Groaning in pain, he gasped, "Eliz'b'th, stop! Please!"

"Lex make you better," she piped up seriously.

Lex's expressionless face appeared in his line-of-sight and the other man started patting him down. Clark snarled, "What're you doing, Luthor!?"

There was a visible flinch at the demand, but aside from the tightening of Lex's jaw, there was no response. Clark struggled with all his strength, but couldn't move. "Can't take me like a real man,

you've got to have a little girl do your dirty work, huh?"

Lex took out a substantial sized, green-glowing rock and looked at him, eyes and expression hard. "If you don't want me to shove this in your mouth, you'll tell me where the red Kryptonite is, right now."

Laughing with contempt, Clark answered, "Like you would let me die? You don't have the balls, Luthor."

"Oh you'd be surprised," Lex countered, a wolfish grin now in evidence. "For instance, you yourself taught me right from wrong, Clark. You also know how obsessed the born-again personality can be. Think about that and, while you're at it, think about whether or not I would allow you to ravage this planet according to your insane whim. Think *very* carefully, Clark, and then tell me where the fucking rock is!"

Clark kept silent and Lex brought the green meteor up to his face, pressing it against the tender skin under Clark's chin. He could feel the heat of a thousand degrees burning away his flesh and

moaned with the pain.

Inexorable, Lex demanded, "Tell me!"

When the meteor was touched to his ear, Clark jerked in shocked pain and exclaimed, "My sock! Left sock!"

Lex immediately went down and pulled up the pant-leg. It was almost a physical tearing of himself when the red Kryptonite was taken away and Clark screamed, blacking out.

* * * *

The scream scared Elizabeth badly enough that she lost control and started wailing. Clark dropped heavily to the floor, his head impacting loudly. By then, Martha and Jonathan had come in and Lex tossed the glittering red stone to Jonathan, ordering, "Get that thing out of here now!"

Jonathan nodded and hurried out of the penthouse while Martha picked up the crying Elizabeth, soothing her. Lex started undressing Clark, needing to ascertain that there were no other fragments hidden away somewhere.

"Lex?"

"I need to make sure there aren't any more," Lex answered, strained. "Before he wakes up again."

"I'll just take Elizabeth to the kitchen, then."

Lex nodded, but didn't pay her any attention. He had no idea how long Clark would be out, but couldn't take the chance of removing the Kryptonite until he was sure that there was no more of the red rock around. He yanked and tore the clothes off Clark unceremoniously, working as fast as he could. Once the other man was nude, he ran his hands and his eyes carefully over Clark, checking closely for anything red.

"Lex! What the hell are you doing?"

"Jonathan, come in here, please!"

Irritated at Jonathan's scandalized exclamation, Lex nonetheless ignored it and continued the examination, glad for Martha's intervention. He didn't have time to spare for quaint but time-

consuming Midwestern sensibilities. He looked over every part and orifice of Clark's body, needing to be absolutely positive. When he was, Lex got to his feet and brought the green meteor to Jonathan and ordered, "Get rid of this. There's no sign of more red Kryptonite."

"It was an awfully big chunk, Lex, much larger than the ones Clark was exposed to before," Jonathan countered, worried. "We don't know how he'll be, once he wakes up. We should keep it on hand, just in case."

Though he wanted to believe that once Clark woke, things would be right back to normal, Lex had to admit it was a good idea. Growling in frustration, Lex nodded. "Fine. But..."

"Lex?"

The weak call was barely audible, but Lex heard it and rushed back into the living room. Clark was half rolled onto his side, obviously exhausted and nauseous. Careful, Lex stopped a couple of feet away and asked, "Clark? How do you feel?"

Frowning, looking at Lex blearily, Clark answered, "Like road-kill. What happened?"

Relief so intense that his knees weakened ran through Lex and he knelt beside Clark, cupping his head and smiling. "It's a long story."

"Oh God, Lex, what happened? Someone tried to kill you again?" Clark exclaimed, eyes wide as his fingers reached up and traced the dark bruises on Lex's collarbone.

Bending over, Lex wrapped his arms around Clark and held tight, pressing his face to Clark's throat. Clark's arms surrounded him to return the embrace, but Lex gasped in pain as his bruised back was squeezed and Clark instantly jerked away.

"It's okay, Clark, everything's fine now," Lex assured him, sitting back a little.

Clark's eyes held the intent look Lex associated with using his x-ray vision and then a fierce frown crossed his face and Clark demanded, "You've been beaten! Tell me what's going on! Why can't I remember anything?"

At the near-panic in his lover's voice, Lex rubbed Clark's chest and soothed, "It's okay, I'm fine. I wasn't badly hurt, I promise. Let's get you into bed and I'll explain."

That seemed to call attention to the fact that Clark was naked and his eyebrows rose in shock. "I don't think I'm going to like this."

"Probably not," Lex muttered, succeeding in getting his arm under Clark's back and helping him up.

It was like a drunken stagger, but they made it to the bedroom where Clark promptly collapsed onto the bed, dragging Lex down with him. Lex groaned as an elbow hit a particularly sore part of his back and shifted away.

"Lex?"

Lex looked over at Jonathan and answered, "Yes?"

"We'll be right in the living room if you need anything," Jonathan offered.

If he needed the Kryptonite, was what the older man didn't say. Lex nodded and Jonathan left, though he kept the door open.

Sitting up, Lex dragged the covers down and then pulled them over an already asleep Clark, noting the goose bumps and shivers wracking his lover's body. It was almost like the other man was going through a withdrawal, which would make sense if the red Kryptonite acted like a drug. Brushing his fingers through Clark's soft, tangled hair, Lex murmured, "You're going to be okay, Clark, you're going to be fine."

Part 2

Roughly twelve hours later, Lex had to revise his opinion that Clark was going to be fine, at least right away. The worst of it was that they couldn't do anything except work through the withdrawal as it happened. So far they'd had vomiting, chills, and a dangerously high fever where they'd had to drag him to the shower into freezing cold water. Lex still wasn't warmed up from that, even though he was currently buried under the covers and wrapped around Clark.

Martha had gone home to drop Elizabeth at the Ross' for however long it took to get Clark back to normal. Pete himself had called looking for Clark and demanded that Lex's plane bring him and Chloe back to help, but Lex had assured him that by the time they got back, Clark would be through it. Though reluctant, Pete had acquiesced to staying put. Which was both good and bad. Good because he and Chloe didn't deserve to have their time together cut short and bad because

Lex had come to rely on the other man when it came to Clark, heavily at times.

As substitutes went, Jonathan Kent just didn't measure up. He would do anything for his son, but so far, Lex had seen him run the gamut from embarrassed to mortified and knew that the older man was fast approaching his limit. Lex had almost asked his father-in-law to be the one to bring Elizabeth home, but if something happened, Lex would need the other man's strength to help with Clark. Martha was great, but she wasn't up for this sort of thing physically; she just didn't have the brute strength that might be needed.

"Lex, Lex please, help me."

Lex held tighter to Clark and whispered into his lover's ear, "I'm right here, Clark, I swear. I'm not going anywhere."

"Hurts, please, please send it away, hurts so bad," Clark murmured brokenly, his breath hitching.

Knowing that he spoke of the Kryptonite, Lex gently kissed Clark's forehead and answered, "I can't, love, I am so sorry, but I can't."

"Please, Lex, please," Clark begged, sobbing now.

Feeling broken inside at the shameless desperation, Lex just held on tighter, rocking his lover through the pain.

* * * *

Jonathan stared blankly at the open door, through which all he could see from his current position, was the foot of the bed. He could hear Clark crying though, and it tore him apart inside. He hadn't heard Clark like that ever and all he wanted to do was pull his little boy into his arms and soothe him through the pain.

The elevator chime startled him out of his thoughts and he hurriedly moved to close the bedroom door. From there, he took a second to straighten himself out, then went to wait until the elevator opened. Expecting Martha, he stepped back in shock when the doors opened on Lionel Luthor. His first instinct was to wrap his hands around the other man's throat and take care of the threat for good, but he restrained himself. "Luthor."

Lionel smirked faintly and said, "Are you going to let me out of the elevator, Jonathan?"

"No."

Lips pursed, Lionel replied, "I see. Well, Clark himself asked me to stop by, so you should reconsider."

"My son isn't feeling well," Jonathan countered coldly. "When he's up to it, I'll have him call you."

"Really? Perhaps I should pay my respects then..."

Before he got more than a pace out of the elevator, Jonathan shoved him back inside. "You stay away from the boys, Lionel, do you hear me?"

"I think we've already had this conversation, Jonathan, and it ended with me saying, `Or you'll what?' Have you decided what as yet?"

Feeling true hatred for the first time in his life, Jonathan stared at the slender man who had caused so much harm over the years, to so many people.

Lionel grew edgy at the silent stare then demanded, "Well?"

Straightening up, Jonathan nodded. "I have decided what. If you don't stay away from me and mine, which includes Lex, then I'll kill you and be damned to the consequences. I would consider it justice to have your blood on my hands, Lionel, and that's a fact."

For a few moments, Lionel returned his stare, then silently shifted forward to hit the elevator Lobby button.

When the doors closed, Jonathan sagged in relief. Despite the fact that Lionel Luthor brought out the worst in everyone, he hated that he was now included in that.

"Thank you."

Startled by Lex's quiet voice, Jonathan faced Lex and found the young man leaning against the bedroom doorframe. He was even paler than usual and plainly exhausted. Jonathan's heart went out to him because as terrible as it was for him, for Lex it was doubly so. "For what?"

"For including me in your family like that. I...Even after all this time I've never, never been sure how you felt about me," Lex answered, awkward.

And that seemed like such a crime, suddenly. That this young man who had given so much to all of them, from the beginning, should feel unwelcome. Without thinking about it, Jonathan strode across the room and reached for Lex. He flinched back and Jonathan stopped, his hands out. What kind of childhood had he led to cause such a reaction? Jonathan wondered bleakly. Softly, he whispered, "Come here, son."

Lex swallowed heavily, but didn't move.

Jonathan pulled Lex into his arms, slow and careful, informing him roughly, "I've said it before, and I'll say it again, Lex, until you believe me. You're part of this family and always will be, no matter what."

After a moment of standing stiff in the embrace, Lex finally melted into it and held tight.

* * * *

He wasn't in pain, but he didn't really feel good either. The thing that told Clark he was all right was the soft, steady breathing of the man beside him. There was a residual weakness throughout his entire body, though, which told him that somewhere nearby was Kryptonite. Considering everything that he'd done, he had to admit that it was a wise precaution.

There was no more missing time, no black out that he could cling to. Waking up, Clark remembered everything that he had said and done to Lex since taking that piece of red Kryptonite from Lionel and it made him writhe internally from the disgrace. How could Lex ever trust him again, never mind feel secure enough to sleep beside him?

Rising up on his elbow, Clark looked down at his troubled, vulnerable lover who, even in sleep, looked like the weight of the world was carried upon his shoulders. The shame inside from how he'd hurt Lex colored everything as he whispered, "God, Lex, I am so, so sorry."

His finger traced the air over the black and purple bruises that shaded the pale skin just above Lex's collarbone. He knew there were other bruises, probably worse ones, hidden by the sheet drawn mid-chest. As though sensing the scrutiny, Lex's eyes snapped open and, for just a second, fear flared in the deep pools staring back at him. Clark flinched at the emotion, even as fleeting as it was, and turned from his lover, unable to bear it.

Hunched over, curling into a ball, Clark asked softly, "How can you stand to be near me?"

A sigh of relief filled the air and Lex plastered himself to Clark from behind, his arms wrapping around Clark's chest. Gentle, loving kisses touched his back before Lex replied, "Because you can ask me that. It wasn't you, Clark, it was that fucking meteorite ruling you."

"But it was me," Clark countered, miserable.

"Clark, look at me, please?"

After a long hesitation, Clark turned over, looking up at Lex, who remained on his side and cupped Clark's face. He bent down and pressed their lips together, but Clark was afraid to respond, afraid of hurting his lover.

If he even still had the right to call Lex that.

"Please, Clark, I need you," Lex murmured against his lips. "So much."

Groaning, Clark opened to the other man, half-sobbing with apology and near-desperation as Lex plundered his mouth with strength. Lex crawled on top of him, straddling him and the sheet fell away to reveal many bruises, even in the darkened room. Pinning his hands to the side, Lex rode Clark without actual penetration. His ass flattened Clark's cock between them and he grunted softly in lust and love as their fingers twined together, helping him remain upright.

"Kiss me, Lex, God please kiss me!"

Lex instantly leaned forward, his hips still rotating back and forth over Clark's hard shaft, and sealed their mouths together again. He fucked Clark's mouth with his tongue, taking everything and giving no quarter as both punishment and reward. Punishment for what had happened and reward for not going further, which they both knew could easily have happened under the influence as Clark had been.

Moaning and gasping now as his cock tightened from the stimulation, Clark's legs pulled up, bracing Lex and silently urging him to go harder. But Lex wouldn't be hurried, instead maintaining a steady pace, controlling Clark's and his own orgasm with a viciousness that bordered on cruel.

He broke the kiss and sucked and bit savagely at Clark's skin; not just the nipples, but every bit of flesh that he could get to. With the Kryptonite so nearby, Clark felt every sharp and cutting indentation of the teeth against him. His skin broke on one particularly wild bite causing him to cry out in pleasured pain and buck against Lex.

Lex licked and sucked the spilled blood, which seemed to spark an even more primitive reaction from him. He released his hold on Clark's hands and sucked and bit his way down the muscled torso. He stopped upon reaching the newly freed erection and swallowed it, going down without preamble and provoking a barely muffled shout from Clark. His throat enveloped Clark's cock greedily, needing the connection that had been withheld for far too long.

"Lex, Lex please, let me come, please let me come!"

The agonized pleading filled Lex in a way that he hadn't even known he'd needed. Pulling off the hard shaft with a wet, nasty sound, Lex looked up at Clark and ordered, "Come for me, Clark, come for me now!"

Hands wrapped in the bedding so fiercely that it tore, Clark came, the seed spurting on his abdomen and stomach as he groaned long and loud at the release. When Clark collapsed utterly, Lex smeared his hands in the warm seed then, deliberately, coated his cock with it, mixing it with his own pre-come in full view of Clark's sated eyes.

Smiling blissfully, feeling more relaxed and open than he'd ever been, Clark nodded as Lex lined himself up. After a heated, whispered, "I love you, Clark," Lex pushed into the hole for the first time. Ignoring the severe twinge from his injured back, thrilling to the exquisite tightness surrounding his cock, Lex leaned forward on his fists and sealed their mouths together. Clark's hands were still gripping the bedding, not trusting his control yet, and he moaned in another mix of pleasure and pain.

Lex didn't stop until he was buried balls deep in his lover. Once there, however, his eyes closed and the kiss gentled. Clark couldn't explain the feeling of having Lex so deep inside, so vitally

connected to him the way he was. It was incredible, incandescent, and utterly heart-stopping. He suddenly understood what everyone was talking about. He knew, now, why Lex had never felt the lack of doing things any other way than they had.

His cock was hard again and his groin grew tight as Lex began moving. The rhythm was hard and punishing, merciless as the hard cock withdrew almost to the tip and plunged back in. It hurt, no

doubt about that, the friction was almost uncomfortable as Lex kept up the pace, but Clark felt good, too, with no desire to stop his lover. What he really wanted was to go on like this forever.

Finally drawing enough breath to speak, he whispered encouragement, "Please, Lex, please! Ride me, fuck me harder, it's so good, hurts so good, keep doing me, God, keep doing me forever!"

Panting now, his hips slamming harder and faster at the litany, Lex moaned, "Fuck! Clark!"

It was over in a heartbeat for them both. The moment that Lex's hips thrust against him the last time and his seed spilled as hot and deep as it could go, Clark's heart stopped and he came again,

feeling his soul pour from him along with his come. His sight edged to black just as Lex collapsed upon him, out for the count as well.

* * * *

At the first soft bit of conversation that told Jonathan his son was back to normal, he rushed to the bedroom. What he saw, though, was something a father tried never to witness: their child in the grip of a full, adult passion. Flushing, he pulled the door shut and quickly put as much distance between himself and the bedroom as possible.

The elevator chimed again and he briefly hoped it was Lionel so he would have an excuse to leave, escorting the other man out. It was Martha, looking anxious as the doors opened. Before she could move, Jonathan ordered, "Stay put. We're leaving."

There was a muffled shout from the bedroom, but even with the door closed, it was obvious what was going on. Martha's jaw dropped and she nodded. "Oh! Get the Kryptonite. Clark's, ah, obviously back to normal."

"Right. Kryptonite. Be right back."

Feeling as though he were being chased by a devil, Jonathan jogged to where the green stone rested on the coffee table. He pocketed it just as another shout echoed from within the other room and he paused, recognizing the pain in Clark's voice, turning towards the bedroom.

"Jonathan. Leave the boys alone. This is...ah...between them," Martha stated firmly, despite the pink flush to her face.

Returning to the elevator, Jonathan was never so glad to leave somewhere as he was just then. As the elevator doors closed, a long, loud moan echoed and he shifted, extremely uncomfortable. There was no mistaking the lust and pleasure in his son's voice, or Lex's, but it still went against the grain to know that his son, his little boy, was actually having sex. Not having sex with a man, just having sex period.

Martha sighed and put her arm around Jonathan's waist with, "He's a grown man, Jonathan."

Wrapping his arms around his wife's shoulders, Jonathan had to agree.

* * * *

When Lex woke, his first instinct was to smile and he gave in unconditionally. Strong arms were wrapped around him and he was nestled firmly in Clark's embrace. Sighing deeply, he kissed the

nearest patch of skin and felt it twitch under his lips.

Clark chuckled warmly and greeted, "Morning."

Squirming up and to the side so that he could look his lover in the eyes, Lex simply stared at Clark. Cupping the beloved face, his thumb brushed over the still-bruised lips and he apologized

softly, "I didn't mean to be so rough your first time."

With a blissed-out smile, Clark replied, "I loved it. God, Lex, it was, was... I can't even think of the words. I mean, I never come twice so close together, so you have to know that I loved every

second of it! I felt so connected to you, so...so much a part of you. It was so perfect."

Lex gently kissed him and said, "I'm glad you enjoyed it. Next time will be even better."

"I don't think I'll survive anything better than that," Clark answered, grinning broadly.

The kiss was lazy and wet, without any real intent except to reacquaint themselves. The sun shone bright through the windows, bathing everything in a golden hue and warming them even without benefit of sheets or blankets. When Lex pulled back, he found Clark looking very much like the cat who swallowed the canary and grinned, shaking his head. "I'm sure we scared your parents off with that little display last night."

Clark's jaw dropped. "My parents were here?"

Yet again, Lex was treated to the delightful full-body blush as Clark groaned in embarrassment and turned his face into the pillow. Chuckling wickedly, Lex teased, "I'm sure they left at the first

moan."

Another groan issued forth and Clark exclaimed, "I'll never be able to face them again!"

"Every child who has ever been caught doing more than making out by their parents says the same thing. It'll be fine."

"You're an evil, evil man, Lex," Clark sighed, finally facing his lover again.

"Speaking of which," Lex began, abruptly serious. "Why the fuck wasn't I told about this red meteorite? I can kind of understand your parents not telling me, but why didn't you say anything?"

Flushing for a different reason, Clark answered, "I didn't think there was any left. And you know how bitterly sorry I am, right? Are you all right? I didn't hurt you too badly, did I?"

Lex kissed Clark's nose and replied, "I'll be fine with a few hot soaks. Though I should ask you the same thing. Jesus, Clark, I *bit* you!"

"And it was hot and got me harder than I've been in my life," Clark insisted.

Tracing the ugly, bloody teeth marks in Clark's chest with his finger, Lex suggested, "We should take a shower and clean each other off. I think antibiotics are even called for at this point. Then

there are phone calls to make. Pete and Chloe were all set to cut their trip short to come back, and your parents should hear from you directly that you're okay."

Clark nodded, but instead of moving, he carefully pulled Lex back into his arms and asked, "Can I just hold you for a while first?"

Settling in close, resting his cheek to Clark's chest, Lex sighed deeply and relaxed again. "I would love that."

They were silent for a long time, holding one another, then Clark said, "I love you, you know that, right Lex?"

Lex brought Clark's hand to his lips with, "I know. And I love you, Clark, more than anything."

END