Chapter Fourteen
Lara took Ken’s hand and they walked through the kitchen and out into the yard. She led him down past the barn to a large oak tree that contained a weathered treehouse.
“This is my dad’s treehouse,” she said pointing up. “He spent a lot of time here as a child when his powers were developing.” Ken looked up, following Lara’s direction. He grasped her other hand.
“His body was changing and he found he could do things no one else could. Dad said that his parents were great. They supported him, loved him, and helped him learn to control his powers.” Lara’s eyes met his and she smiled. “I’m so blessed that I didn’t have to go through that. He was there for me, he taught me how to control my powers. Even so, I was scared. I can’t even comprehend how scary it was for him.”
“I’m glad he was there for you. I never thought Superman would have problems like that. He seems so confident and in control, it makes me respect him, even more now, knowing what he’s overcome.”
Lara led him farther along the path. “Come on.”
Soon they arrived at the pond on the property. They sat on the rocks at the edge and gazed out over the water. Lara picked up a flat rock and skipped it across the smooth surface.
“Dad and I spent a lot of time here when I was young. This is where I first practiced my X-ray vision looking for fish behind the rocks. It’s where I learned to control my other vision powers too. We talked a lot here over the years. It’s so serene. It helps calm me as no other place can.”
Ken wrapped his arm around her shoulders and drew her into the crook of his arm. “Honey, I hope I’m not bringing up a sore subject but… you never talk about your mom. Has she passed?”
“No, she’s alive.” Lara sighed. She took a calming breath and told Ken the story her dad had told her, about her conception and how Lois hadn’t wanted to deal with a child. How Clark had brought her home to Smallville and raised her as a single parent, with the help of his parents of course.
“Recently I found that Lois has a sister who has two children of her own. I met her and we talked about Lois and how Aunt Lucy regretted her part in supporting her.”
Lara sighed. “At the end of our visit, she invited all of us to Thanksgiving dinner, so of course, I wanted to go. Dad mentioned that Lois might be there and would I still want to go if she did. I didn’t know what to do.”
Lara looked at her feet for a moment before she continued. “All these years I’ve harbored anger at the woman who didn’t want to be my mother. I wondered what I’d done to drive her away, you know how children can be?”
Ken reached out and took Lara’s hand in support.
“I thought long and hard and after I talked to Dad and Grandma, I realized that my anger was only harming me so I decided that I needed to forgive Lois. I can see how she came to the decision she did. While I’ll never forget not having a mother in my life, I can accept it and forgive.”
“That must have been so hard for you.” Ken kissed the top of her head and hugged her. “I’m proud of you for being so forgiving. It makes me love you even more.”
They sat silently for a while longer then Lara rose. She took Ken’s hand to continue their journey, but before they got too far Ken stopped in front of a tree, his fingers tracing something on the trunk.
“Hey, Lara, what’s this?”
“Oh, that.” Lara grinned. “I did that when Dad was teaching me to control my heat vision. He told me to burn my initials inside a circle and not to go beneath the bark. It took me a couple of tries to get the intensity right, but, as you can see, it turned out pretty good.”
“That’s amazing.” Ken ran his fingers over the LLK initials burned into the tree.
“Come on, there’s still more to see.”
They walked farther into the property until they came to a fence that divided the Kent property from their neighbor.
“This is Shuster’s field,” Lara said as she leaned on the fence. Ken put his arms over the top rail and looked out over the grassy field.
“Right over there is where my dad’s ship landed.” Lara pointed to a small group of trees about fifty yards away. “Grandma and Grandpa were driving home one night, the road is close to here. Anyway, they saw what looked like a meteor shoot across the sky and crash into the field.” Ken turned to face her his eyes wide.
“Grandma is a curious person so she made Grandpa stop and they got out to look for the meteor. Can you imagine their surprise when, instead of finding a rock in a crater, they found a small spaceship!” Ken’s jaw dropped in surprise.
“When they touched it the top popped open and inside it was a baby boy! Grandma and Grandpa couldn’t have children so they took him home and, through the help of a friendly doctor, got them paperwork allowing them to keep him. Grandpa buried the ship and that was that, or so they thought.”
Ken interrupted with a question. “Oh? What happened?”
Lara was angry now. “Some government types were nosing around then asking questions. Nobody in town would tell outsiders anything but just before I was born Dad found that the ship had been stolen.”
Ken’s expression showed surprise and anger. “Stolen? Do you know where it was taken?”
Lara replied, frustrated. “Dad said he found it in a warehouse in Metropolis but when he had a chance to go back it was gone. Someday I’m gonna get it back for him.”
Ken reached up and cupped Lara’s cheek. “If anyone can find it, you can.”
Lara leaned into the caress and smiled. “Thanks, Ken. I appreciate the support.”
Ken said, “I can see why you love your family as you do and I’m humbled that you’ve shared all this with me.”
“I want you to know everything about us. If you’re going to be part of this family you need to know everything.”
“I want to be part of this family, Lara. I can’t imagine my life without you.” Ken drew her into his chest. His head lowered, his lips descended on hers and they kissed. Their tongues explored, their arms wrapped tightly around each other as they expressed their love and commitment. When the kiss ended their chests were heaving.
“Ummm, honey, have you ever encountered Kryptonite?”
Lara shuddered at the mere mention of the hated meteorite. “No, thank God! Dad took care of that years ago.”
“Oh, how did he do that?”
“After he brought me home from the hospital, he searched for any Kryptonite that might be around. He didn’t want to take any chances that I would encounter it. Every night he scanned the area starting where the ship landed. He went in concentric circles and, when he found a piece, he marked it with his heat vision.
“The next night he’d take Grandpa to dig it up and put it in a lead-lined box. He even found some red meteorites that glowed like the green stuff so they took them too. Dad didn’t know how they would affect us but he wasn’t taking any chances.
“He covered an area of five miles in every direction and when no more was found Grandpa filled the box with cement. Dad sealed the box with his heat vision then he flew to the Marianas Trench. He buried the box where no one will ever find it.”
“So there’s no more around?”
“Well, there is. According to Dad, a piece sent to a university lab for analysis went missing. It resurfaced and is now in a vault at a laboratory in Metropolis. But that’s the only piece as far as I know.”
“Good! I don’t want you anywhere near that stuff.” Ken drew her in for a kiss that soon flared into passion. Ken reluctantly pulled his lips away and their foreheads touched.
“We should get back,” Lara said between breaths. “Lunch should be ready by now.”
“Okay, let’s go.”
When they returned to the farmhouse Lara saw Martha in mid-preparation for the noon meal. Pots were simmering away on the stove and it looked like her grandmother could use some help.
“Let me give you a hand, Grandma,” Lara said. She put on an apron and dug in. “Why don’t you go sit down, Ken? We’ll call you when we’re ready.” Ken gave Lara a quick kiss on his way to the living room.
**********
Ken saw Clark alone reading the paper. “Hi Clark, where’s Jonathan?”
Clark put down his paper. “He had something to pick up in town. He should be back in a bit. Why don’t you sit down? Did you and Lara have a nice walk?”
Ken settled himself on the chair next to Clark. “We did, thanks.” Ken paused and took a breath to calm himself. “Clark, I just want you to know that I love Lara with all my heart. I know this all seems so quick, we’ve only had one date after all, but I’ve never felt like this about anyone! I can’t imagine my life without her. And it has nothing to do with her powers. I felt like this before she told me about herself. I won’t lie, the powers are a nice addition but I’d love her if she didn’t have them. I hope you believe me.” Ken sat back in the chair and waited.
“I believe you, Ken. I know how you feel to a certain extent. I felt that way about Lara’s mother, still do. I don’t know if she told you but I messed up with her, not telling her about myself, so I’m glad Lara didn’t make the same mistake.”
“She told me a little but that’s all. I’m glad she forgave her mother though. That kind of anger can turn a person bitter and Lara is too positive a person for that.” Just then they heard Jonathan’s truck pull in and Martha called them in to lunch. After lunch, Lara and Ken said their goodbyes and flew back to Chicago.
**********
When they landed on her balcony Lara spun back into her regular clothes then she grasped Ken’s hand and led him into the living room.
“I had a great time, honey,” Ken said. “Your family is just as you described them and I feel like I’ve known them my whole life.”
“I’m so glad. I love them so much and it means a lot to me that you love them too.”
“Thanks for showing me all the special places of your childhood too. I can see how much they mean to you.”
“You know, now that you’ve seen my childhood home and met my family, I’d like to meet your family. Do you think we could meet them sometime?”
“Of course! I’d love to show off my beautiful girlfriend. Since my family is kind of scattered, we’d have to do it over a few weekends but I think we can make that happen. I’ll call my parents this week and make sure they’ll be home. I can tell them we’ll fly down after work Friday and meet up with them on Saturday, how does that sound?”
“Great! I’m sorry we can’t just fly to meet them any time we want—”
“There’s nothing to be sorry about! I understand completely. Besides if you weren’t Superwoman, we’d have to spread our visits out anyway, so it’s no big deal.”
“Even so, I appreciate your understanding. The fewer people who know the secret the better. Superman hasn’t actively fought crime in years but there are still evil people who would love to be able to control dad and me by hurting our loved ones.”
“Yeah, that’s a scary thought. I would never do anything to jeopardize you and your family.”
“I know. So what are we going to do for the rest of the afternoon?”
“What do you say we drive out to the Botanic Gardens? It’s a beautiful day for a walk.”
“Great! Let’s go.”
**********
Ken McCarthy walked into his apartment later that evening after he’d left Lara’s place. Today had certainly been a momentous day, that was for sure. When Lara called early that morning and invited him over for breakfast, he’d expected to spend the day enjoying Lara’s company. And, probably, enjoying some of her wonderful kisses. But that was not what happened, not in the least!
Ken walked into his kitchen and opened his refrigerator to grab a bottle of his favorite beer. He twisted the top off and threw it into the trash. Then he plopped down on the couch and took a sip where the cold liquid ran down his throat. He stared off into the distance and pondered what he’d learned today.
His girlfriend, Lara Kent, was Superwoman! When she’d told him her secret, he hadn’t believed her, I mean who would? They’d known each other for barely a week and had had only one official date. They were still getting to know each other. Granted they shared a connection that he’d never, ever experienced with any other woman, and they had said those three scary words to each other but still… When he’d expressed his disbelief she’d stood up, walked to the middle of her living room, and begun to spin! He’d almost fainted when instead of seeing Lara Superwoman stood there dressed in a black spandex suit with a large electric blue S on her chest! Before he’d had a chance to absorb what he’d seen she spun again and Lara reappeared. After that, they had flown to Smallville to meet her family.
They’d showed him an amazing piece of technology and places that were important to Lara growing up. They’d welcomed him into this amazing family with open arms. But he still had problems believing it was all real, despite having flown with her and having met her father, who was Superman.
Lara was so down to earth and so darn normal! She grew up on a farm in Kansas for God’s sake! She had a normal childhood, went to college, and now had a job, an apartment, and bills. Superwoman didn’t have bills to pay! She protected life and property, assisted the emergency services when necessary, and was an all-around superhero and role model for everyone but especially for women and girls everywhere.
When they’d returned from the Botanic Gardens Lara made dinner, a delicious chicken stir-fry, and they had talked about everything. She’d told him that she had discovered why they had fallen so hard for each other so quickly.
**********
“Ken, have you ever heard of soulmates?” Lara had asked. She’d gazed into his eyes as they sat on the sofa.
“Sure. That’s the concept of love at first sight that’s touted by all those bodice ripper love stories some women like to read. Why do you ask?”
“Haven’t you wondered why we both felt something we’ve never felt before when we first met?”
“Yeah, sure, but I thought it was because you’re so beautiful.” Ken grinned, his eyes twinkling.
Lara thwapped him on the shoulder and replied, “Oh, you! I’m serious. I’ve never felt like this about anyone in my life before you so, being ‘different,’ I asked my dad if he’d felt like this when he met my mother.”
Ken wondered where Lara was going with this line of thought. “And did he?”
“He did. He told me that he felt things for her unlike any other woman he’d ever met, and he’d met a lot in his travels.”
Lara took Ken’s hand and squeezed it gently.
Ken returned the gesture. “Why do you think that is?”
“When I asked him, I wondered if it was a Kryptonian thing but he didn’t know so I suggested we consult the globe.”
“The globe you showed me today? Doesn’t it only show those holograms?”
“No. It can do a whole lot more. Dad and I held it in our hands instead of letting it float and that turned on a query mode neither of us knew existed.”
“That’s amazing, so what did it say?”
“It seems that Kryptonians can sense when they meet their soulmate. The globe said that the soulmate bond was a rare and wonderful thing and it also said that Kryptonians mate for life!” Lara’s eyes gleamed and her smile warmed his heart.
“For life, I like the sound of that.” Ken gazed deeply into Lara’s eyes.
“I do too. I’ve been thinking, though, there were so many things that had to happen to make it possible for us to meet and fall in love, you know.”
“Oh, like what?”
“It started with my father. If Krypton hadn’t exploded, they wouldn’t send him to Earth. If he hadn’t studied journalism he’d never have applied to the Daily Planet. If Lois hadn’t walked into his interview they’d have never met because Mr. White wasn’t going to hire him and it was the story that Lois didn’t want to write that got him the job.
“If he hadn’t created Superman, he probably would have done something to make him move to a different city, he’d done it before. If Lois wasn’t thrown off that building Dad wouldn’t have saved her and they wouldn’t have had sex which resulted in my conception. If you hadn’t been born, if you hadn’t become a firefighter we’d have never met. If I hadn’t studied journalism, I wouldn’t have interviewed you. When you think about it it’s amazing we met at all!” Lara finished with an exclamation.
“I never thought of it that way, but you’re right. You know what that says about us?” Ken raised his hand to cup her face.
“No, what.” Lara leaned into his caress.
“It means that we were meant to be together and that I’m the luckiest man in the world to have met you.” Ken leaned down to claim Lara’s lips in a soul-searing kiss.
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Continued in Chapter Fifteen
