Date: Sun, 21 Mar 2004 13:13:46 -0800 (PST)
From: Whitney Ross <whitney_ross01@yahoo.com>
Subject: Soulmates Part 3

SV3

This is fantasy fiction intended for an audience of gay males over the age
of 18. It contains detailed description of homosexual activity and if you
find this offensive you should not read on.

This story in no way reflects the true sexual preferences of any of the
characters or actors who may have portrayed them and should not, in any way
be taken as a true representation of any activities that have ever been
performed.

Superman and some of these characters are trademarks of and copyright of DC
Comics. Smallville, its plotlines, characters and ideas are the property of
the WB.

Please feel free to write with feedback and comments, it's the only thing
that tells us you are out there reading !

Drop me a line at whitney_ross01@yahoo.com

****** He heard crashing noises as the side of the barn began to
collapse. Clark turned in horror expecting to see Chris horribly injured or
worse. But to his amazement he saw something else. Chris was crouched on
the ground between Clark and the explosion. A bright glow surrounded Chris
and extended out to encompass the explosion.

As Chris crept backwards he told Clark to get out of the barn. A stunned
Clark complied and he saw the barn collapse into a pile of burning
rubble. Moments later Chris emerged from the ruined building, still
emitting a slight glow. The glow vanished and Chris fell to the ground.

Clark rushed over, afraid Chris was really hurt, but in just a few minutes
Chris regained consciousness. The two of them sat for a little while as
Chris recovered his strength and Clark recovered from his shock.

"I guess I need to explain what happened...." began Chris ****** Clark and
Chris drove in silence back to the Kent farm. Clark had told Chris to just
rest from his ordeal and that they could talk about it later. Within
seconds of sitting down in truck, Chris was fast asleep. Clark smiled as he
watched Chris breathe, and couldn't help but notice the warmth roll all
over his body as he did.

But Clark didn't have time to dwell on that. He hadn't told Chris to rest
just out of kindness. He needed time to think. It was pretty clear to him
that Chris was another so called meteor freak and his past experiences with
them hadn't been very good. In fact most of them had gone out of their way
to either kill Clark or cause havoc all over Smallville.

At the same time there seemed to be something different about Chris. After
all he had saved Clark's life and that wasn't the usual practice of meteor
people. The one recent exception to that rule hadn't turned out so well,
but even Alicia had acted out of love for Clark rather than malice. So he
was willing to give Chris a chance, but he would be careful not to be too
open about his own abilities.

By now they were back at the farm, so Clark gently awoke Chris. His hand
lingered over Chris' chest to shake him and Clark was surprised when Chris
reached up and pulled them against his warm body. But he assumed that Chris
was just half awake and dismissed the moment. Chris was now awake and they
headed into the barn so that they could talk. Chris had begun to talk but
Clark caught himself checking him out from behind and again dismissed it
from his mind, trying to focus.  ****** The two men sat in the barn
loft. There was nobody else around but Chris insisted on closing the doors
to make sure nobody was listening.

"It all began a little while after the meteors hit. I was in the hospital
for a long time with more broken bones and injuries than most of the
doctors had ever seen. They said I was in and out of a coma for weeks. The
lab techs told me later that they joked about me being put on the payroll
because I spent more time in the X Ray and MRI labs than some of the
staffers."

Clark winced a little at the thought of someone as nice as Chris being so
helpless and in so much pain, but did his best to keep smiling.

"I finally woke up for good about two months after the accident. It was
then that I learned all about what had happened. At first I didn't remember
all of it, it was just like a blur in my mind. It was a long time and a lot
of nightmares later before I remembered it all. But I don't want to get
into that now. Maybe later." Chris paused and Clark patted him on the
shoulder in a comforting gesture.

"Anyway, once I was awake I was told that my mother was dead and that my
father had been badly hurt. By this time he was out of the hospital but was
in therapy. He was in a wheelchair for the rest of his life you know."

"Yeah, I bet that was tough", said Clark

"It was but at least we had time to spend with each other. I spent lots of
time in the hospital, it was close to six months after the accident before
I even got to take a weekend visit to my grandparent's farm. During that
time I kept up my unofficial job as the biggest user of the MRI labs. I
hated that machine after a while. Its like being locked inside a big metal
tube for hours. One day there was a big storm and while I was in the unit
the power went on and off. It was really weird, almost like someone was
draining the power then sending it back"

Clark focused at this comment, remembering that several meteor people had
used electricity in their powers and wondering if this was the act of
another unknown meteor person. But that was silly, it had to be just the
effects of the storm.

"It was really scary for me. After all I was just a little kid back then
and it was really dark inside with the power off. There were power surges
and sparks and it was a real mess. They got me out but not before I got
some nasty shocks, and I was really freaking out. They took me back to my
room but I felt funny somehow, like I'd stuck my finger in a light socket
or something"

Chris paused and looked around as if he were sure someone was
listening. Clark quickly scanned the area and assured himself that things
were fine.

"It was later that night that it happened for the first time. The room was
still pretty dark because the power was off and they were working off of
generators or something. They had brought in a portable monitor to keep
track of my heart and stuff. I guess they were worried about my shocks and
everything. Anyway, I rolled over in bed to reach for a glass of water."

"My bed shifted a little bit and bumped the wall, the monitor stand must
have been loose because it broke loose and I could see this huge monitor
falling at my head. I still had 2 broken legs so I couldn't move out of the
way. I put up my hands and then it happened. This glow came out of my hands
and the monitor bounced off of it. It was amazing; this big heavy machine
flew away from my face and landed on the floor. At first I assumed that I'd
imagined it but then people rushed in to see what happened. They all said I
was lucky, but I knew something different had happened. Of course I didn't
tell anyone, they'd of thought I was crazy"

"What happened next?" asked Clark, trying to gradually work up to asking
about the meteors. He didn't want to be too obvious.

"Over the next several months in the hospital I began to gradually develop
my abilities. Initially it was more of a reflex kind of action. I would be
able to deflect things, like the monitor, away. As I gradually got onto my
feet I was able to protect myself when I was falling. But for those first
months it was mostly a reaction kind of thing, protecting myself when I
slipped or fell."

"But it didn't stay that way?" Clark asked.

"No. Once I got out of the hospital I still had to spend a few months at
home recovering.  While my body was still healing itself, my mind seemed to
be sharper than ever before. At that time I'd just started school of
course, I was just in first grade. But it seemed like all of the new work
they were sending me was something I'd seen already. Before I knew it I'd
not only caught up with things but was actually running far ahead."

"Well that was pretty cool I'll bet", Clark interjected.

"Yeah it was. In fact to tell you the truth I've never had any problems
with school. I tried not to be too much of a showoff, but schoolwork never
took me any time at all. It really helped, as I got older and was able to
take over a lot of my grandfather's work. I was still really busy, between
work and school and all. But being able to finish my homework so quickly
left me time to work on developing my new abilities."

Chris paused. "I hope I'm not boring you with all of this", he said.

"Not at all, please go on", Clark answered.

"Well anyway, like I said, I began to see how I could control this strange
power I had. It took me quite a while to get to where I could actively
control it. I would work out in the barn or in the fields where nobody
could see me. Eventually I could open and close doors or move hay bales,
but I mostly used it to play games or have fun. Like I'd move things around
and people would wonder what happened. One time when I was about nine or
ten I was being hassled by this older kid. So I moved his car to where it
slid into a mud puddle. It didn't hurt the car but it made me feel better."

Clark laughed at the image, remembering what it was like to be teased or
mistreated and admiring Chris for having self control at such a young age.

"After some trial and error I could do even more. But for the first few
years it was more of a game, nothing really major. But then one day I was
working out in the barn when and some hay bales fell over. I was only a kid
and was sure that they were gonna crush me. I reacted and that was the
first time I enveloped something with a power field. I moved them back into
place."

"Did you have more control after that?" Clark asked.

"Yeah. From then on I got to where could really do everything with them. I
refined them to the point that I could do almost anything. It was like on
Star Trek and the tractor beams they used, it was amazing."

Clark grinned at the mention of Star Trek. Although his geek image didn't
need any enhancing, the truth was he loved the old shows.

"So once I had control I decided I would try to help people when I could. I
had to be careful because I knew if anyone found out, I would be in
trouble. I mean it was weird enough being the kid whose house got hit by
meteors.  I didn't need anything more.

"But I always was on watch and over the years I managed to keep a lot of
people from being hurt. One time I stopped a school bus that lost its
brakes. Another time I helped some kids trapped in a fire. It got to the
point that people joked about Granville luck and how people managed to
survive accidents. Course nobody ever thought of me", he sighed.

Clark knew just how Chris felt, and although he ached to tell him, he kept
silent.

"Of course the one person I couldn't help was my dad. He died in an
accident at the hospital when he was undergoing treatments. So silly that
he survived the meteors only to die in a freak accident."

Clark could tell Chris didn't want to talk about it anymore so he didn't
press the issue. But Chris thought Clark was looking at him to ask the
question he knew was coming.

"I know what you want to ask Clark, its ok. I've spent years trying to
figure out how I got these abilities but no clues yet. I figure maybe it's
one of those things that happen when you go into a coma and have brain
damage and such. That and maybe the power shocks or something. But I never
have gotten an answer that satisfies me"

Clark was stunned; he had always assumed Chris knew the source of his
powers. He knew now he had to help Chris, although he would still try to
keep his own secret.

"Chris, do you trust me?" Clark asked

"Yeah man, I trust ya. I've never told anyone else about my powers, not
even my family" Chris replied.

"Do you remember Chloe?"

"Sure I do"

"Well I think we should go see her. I think that she could answer your
questions. We can trust her too", Clark assured.

Chris was uncertain at first but Clark's firm hand on his shoulder was
comforting and Chris felt liked he was bathed in warmth and comfort. He
knew he could trust Clark and they agreed to go see her. Clark told Chris
to rest while he called Chloe. Clark went into the house and called his
friend, explaining not only the background but also what Chris had told him
about school. Chloe said she would help Chris but would also see what she
could find out about his intelligence. She asked Clark to come later that
evening.

******* Later that evening the two young men headed out to meet with
Chloe. They had decided to meet at the Talon so that she could show Chris
all of the information she had gathered for the wall of weird. Ever since
her encounter with a furious Lionel Luthor and the knowledge that Lex had
been hurt because of her web site, she had been very careful to keep things
isolated. She kept everything on a laptop computer that she never connected
to the internet. Clark was one of the few people that she would open this
up to.

She had arranged with Lana to use the upstairs apartment that had been used
by the mysterious, and as it turned out, quite dangerous Adam. Chloe
greeted the two of them with a smile and as they entered she couldn't help
but notice the chemistry developing between the two young men. She
suspected that perhaps Lana was about to be replaced in Clark's world.

"Well I understand there is something I can help you guys with. But there
is a price for my help. And Chris can help me with it"

"What can I do?" Chris asked.

"Well I've been conducting a scientific study of how people answer a
computer quiz. Clark has already helped me by taking it but I'd like you to
try it as well"

Clark almost opened his mouth to object but realized that this was her
clever way of getting Chris to take the IQ test without making a big deal
over it.

Chris quickly agreed to take the survey and sat down at the computer while
Chloe went over to talk to Clark.

"Pretty clever of you. Thanks" Clark spoke quietly.

"No problem, but we should have some time to talk. It will take him at
least an hour to finish the quiz", she replied.

The two sat in a corner and began to play chess but it wasn't long before
Chris called over to say he was done. Chloe looked at her watch in
confusion, as it had only been about 20 minutes. She was sure Chris had
made a mistake but when she checked, she saw he had in fact finished the
quiz. She decided to have the computer do an in depth analysis of the
results so she clicked the proper icon and set the machine aside.

"Well, while that test is being integrated into my study we can look into
what you came here for. I'll get the computer ready. Why don't you go
downstairs and get us some drinks, just ask Lana", she told Chris.

As Chris left Clark looked at Chloe oddly.

"Ok, what's up?" Clark asked anxiously. " I know that something is wrong
here."

"What's wrong is that there is no way he should have been able to complete
that test so quickly, unless he just guessed. But we should know that in a
few minutes"

"I thought the test analysis was supposed to take a long time?" Clark
asked, a little confused.

"No, only a few minutes for the basic analysis, the details will take a few
hours, but we can get the basic results before he gets back. That's why I
sent him out"

"I appreciate your wanting to watch out for me but I hate to deceive him
like that, he's a nice guy." said Clark

"Seems to me he's a lot more than nice", Chloe replied, with a raised
eyebrow.

"What's that supposed to mean." Clark stammered.

"Don't get me wrong", said Chloe, "I don't mean to tease you or anything
but it just seems like there's something there between the two of you. He
is awful hot looking and you deserve the best."

"Yeah but he's a guy" Clark blurted out.

"Yeah, and so what. Look Clark I'm not gonna pry but I'm not blind
either. I won't tell anyone your secret or even make you tell me. But if
Chris is gonna make you happy then maybe you need to worry more about
yourself and happiness and less about what others think."

Clark didn't respond but luckily the awkward silence was broken by a beep
from the computer indicating the results were complete.

Chloe went over to the machine and Clark saw her face get that look. The
look he'd seen hundred times before. Every time she found something new for
her wall of weird. But this time it was different. He felt his heart leap
into his throat and realized in a flash that Chloe was absolutely
right. All of those feelings that he'd been sidestepping were there. He was
falling in love with Chris. He knew that he would have to take things
slowly and he wasn't sure that Chris would even be open to a relationship.

He saw Chloe had been working on the keyboard and went over to check what
she was doing.

"Clark, I've checked and rechecked these results. There is no doubt they
are correct", she said.

"So what's the word?" asked Clark.

She motioned to the screen where the readout was flashing

		IQ Quotient result: 250

		Quotient Accuracy: 99.8%

		Quotient Percentile: 99.999%

"I'm ok on reading box scores but could you translate this for me please",
he pleaded.

"Well simply put, this means that our boy Chris is probably the smartest
person ever to set foot in Smallville. He's smarter than most of the
professors at Metropolis University put together." she replied

"You've got to be kidding", Clark replied, slightly stunned at what he was
hearing.

"Nope. Let me put it this way. 150 is considered genius level. Einstein was
probably around 200. Chris is 250. This guy is the Michael Jordan of
brains. I have to wonder if this is part of the meteor's effects. I can't
imagine why he didn't go to college. The guy could have gotten into Harvard
when he was 12."

Clark knew the answer to that question. Chris had sacrificed things so he
could remain with his father and take care of his grandparents. He'd hidden
his true intellect so that he could be less conspicuous. Clark felt the
affection he had for Chris deepen, as he knew that Chris was finally
someone who could truly understand his own efforts to hide the truth. He
just hoped he could bring himself to be honest with Chris.

"Well we have to tell him about this." said Clark

"Yeah, but we can put it off for now, wait till all the results are
done. I'll run them through some web sites so we can give him a full
explanation" Chloe said.

"Ok, but we need to tell him about the meteors, so I'll go get him."

Clark headed for the door but Chloe stopped him with a hand on the
shoulder.

"Clark... he does care for you too." she said.

As Clark looked at her he realized she did mean what he hoped she
meant. Could Chris be gay? He decided that he would have to discuss things
with Chris at some point, but not now.

******

As Clark opened the door he saw Chris heading up the stairs with some
drinks and snacks. He looked like an overloaded pack mule with all of the
items in his hand. Neither Clark nor Chloe needed to ask what
happened. When Lana Lang wanted to treat you to a meal she made sure you
had way more than you possibly needed. Of course that treat came with the
price of several minutes of conversation about what was happening outside
Smallville, a topic that Lana was always interested in.

"Well it looks like you've experienced the Lana Lang special" Clark joked.

"Yeah, I even had to promise to come back again and tell her all about
Granville". Chris laughed. "But I don't mind, this is a fun place to come
and Lana is a great person to talk to".

The three sat at a table for a while and nibbled on food and drink while
conversation steered to movies, gossip and just about everything but the
reason they had gotten together that evening. Chloe told Chris that the
test results would take a few days to complete because of the servers at
the university and he seemed to accept the statement.

As they finished eating Chloe stood up and led Chris over to her private
laptop computer.

"First off I want you to understand that everything that happens here stays
here. I won't tell anyone your secret, you can trust me", Chloe promised.

"I'm sure if Clark trusts you then you are ok", Chris responded.

"Well then I think it's time that you learned something. I know it's a
tough subject for you but we have to start with the meteor shower", Chloe
said with a knowing smile that Clark couldn't help noticing.

"That's fine. If you can help me to get some real answers I'm willing to
listen to whatever you have to say" Chris replied.

Clark stood back quietly, not wanting to intrude.

"When the meteors struck Smallville they had some effects that nobody
really understood at the time." Chloe began. "The rocks that were left
behind sometimes had what we'd call unusual effects on the people and
plants that were exposed to them. It took a long time for anyone to really
begin to notice but."

"But Chloe is the type to notice" Clark commented.

"And Clark is the type to interrupt" Chloe responded. "But Clark is
right. I was one of those who started to notice things a few years ago. I
began compiling; please don't be offended here, what I call my wall of
weird. A list of people who had odd or unusual reactions or behaviors."

"One of the first victims was a young man named Jeremy Creek.  Every year
at the time of the homecoming game the seniors pick a freshman to be the
'scarecrow' and tie him up in a field. He was there when a meteor his and
ended up in a coma. But he came out of it and had developed the ability to
use electricity to kill people" said Chloe.

"Then there was Ian Randall, another local boy who was exposed to the rocks
and he developed the ability to split himself in two. He used that ability
to kill people in order to protect his grades at school." said Chloe as she
showed Chris pictures and news reports of the young man who was now in a
mental hospital outside Metropolis.

"Tina Greer was a real piece of work. She was a woman who had the ability
to morph into any person that she wanted to. She used it to kill dozens of
people" Chloe gestured to the computer screen as it showed images of a
number of her victims.

"She even disguised herself as one of our friends, Whitney Fordman. He was
killed over in Afghanistan but she pretended to be him so she could attack
some people" Clark interjected. Both he and Chloe had decided to avoid
making comments about who the targets of some of the freaks had been.

Over the next half hour the two instructed Chris on the many adventures
they'd had with the meteor people, including the disturbed young man who
had taken to hunting meteor people. They wanted to avoid upsetting him but
at the same time they wanted to make sure he knew that risks came with
being a meteor person.

"So you think that this is where I got my abilities?" Chris asked after
Chloe had finished.

"Yes, I think so. The medical reports after you were admitted to the
hospital said you were coated in meteor dust and had lots of little bits
imbedded in your skin. In fact one police officer said that the glow was
what helped them find you. So we know you were exposed. My guess would be
that the power surge in the MRI acted as a sort of jump start and your
abilities began from there."

"Well it makes sense. I think that's probably what happened. Thanks for
telling me about it and keeping my secret", said Chris.

"I hate to ask this, but could you give me a look at your abilities?" Chloe
asked.

"Chloe..." Clark objected.

"No Clark.  It's ok. I think she's earned the right" said Chris. He looked
around and saw a pile of boxes on the floor. A look of concentration came
over his face as a green glow emerged from his hands. The boxes shook for a
moment and then organized into a neat pile.

"Wow, that must come in handy at spring cleaning time" she joked.

"I guess it does." he replied with a smile.

*****

Clark and Chris thanked Chloe and the two headed down the stairs. They
visited with Lana for a little while before heading back to the farm.

It was getting late by the time they returned to the farm so they quietly
snuck up the stairs and into their bedrooms. Clark was somewhat restless
and couldn't get to sleep. He was lying on his bed reading when he heard
Chris yelling in terror from the other room. He rushed across the hall and
over to the bed where he began shaking Chris.

"It's ok man, I'm here" he spoke in hushed tones.  He pulled Chris into his
arms and rubbed his back whispering words of comfort into the young man's
ear until he gradually awoke.

At about the same time Jonathan and Martha appeared at the door but Clark
assured them that things were under control. He didn't want to embarrass
Chris by having too many people in the room. His parents quietly closed the
door, knowing there son had a knack for caring for people. Clark held Chris
tighter, gliding his hand gently up and down Chris' back.  He felt the teen
still shaking and sobbing.

"What happened?" Clark asked, releasing Chris slightly.

"I guess it was the discussions with Chloe but I was dreaming about the
night the meteors hit my house. Like I told you it took me a long time to
remember but when I did it came in nightmares. It was horrible. I remember
screaming and yelling for my parents, as the world seemed to explode all
around us. Then I heard them calling for me. I saw my mother and began
moving towards her but...."

Chris began to cry and Clark pulled him back into his arms. . and held him
in his arms.

"It's ok, I'm here", he whispered against Chris' ear.

"Thanks, I feel so silly crying like a little kid. As I said I was walking
towards my mom when there was a bright flash and explosion and she was just
gone. Just like that." he gasped.

Clark couldn't help reflecting that Lana Lang had experienced the same
thing when her parents died.

"I turned around to find my dad but couldn't see him so I headed back for
the house. Then there was another bright explosion and everything went
dark. When I woke up I was buried in rubble and dirt. It was horrible
because I could hear noises and smell smoke and I was sure I was going to
die. Every time I dream about it I feel like I'm back there."

By now Chris was again softly sobbing and Clark held him tightly and rocked
back and forth in an effort to comfort him.

"I know it has to be tough but you don't have to worry, I'm here for you"
Clark assured.

Chris raised his head to answer Clark. Their faces were just inches
apart. Clark couldn't resist as he leaned forward and gently kissed Chris
on the lips. He froze for a moment worried that Chris would be angry but he
wasn't. Chris returned the kiss and the two young men sat on the bed gentle
kissing each other and holding each other in a comforting embrace.

As Chris gradually calmed down Clark tucked him into bed and gave him one
final good night kiss, then headed back to his own room, wondering what the
next day would bring.