hackthis_archive | SV. RWR. Winter.

Happy Birthday to

happyminion, one of my favorite people in any fandom. I hope you get everything you want and all the happiness you deserve.

Smallville
Come Away With Me

Lex wasn’t terribly prone to panicking, but his primary concern when the wheels of the Ferrari skidded on the ice and his car went over the side of the embankment, wasn’t about Lex Corp stock or missing the next issue of Warrior Angel, but whether or not Clark had remembered to take his notes for his afternoon meeting with the deputy mayor.

Not that Clark needed his notes with his infallible memory, but knowing he had them would’ve made Lex feel more secure than the seatbelt that was currently digging into the curve of his shoulder. Naturally, security seemed to be a rather paramount concern as the front of the Ferrari whipped through stripped trees towards an unknown end, and Lex wondered randomly if Mercy and Hope were enjoying Ibiza.

At least *some* people knew how to take a seasonal vacation. Unlike certain other people who would remain nameless in all their red and blue spandex glory.

Except that he and Clark hadn’t exactly been on the best terms when Clark had sped off to work that morning; and Lex really didn’t want to die knowing that Clark had fucked up a big expose just because of a little argument.

There was a huge jolt, a weightlessness that Lex could only describe as freefall, and *then* the airbags decided to inflate, much to his chagrin. The sound of metal being heavy abused pulled Lex back to his current predicament as frigid Kansas air began whipping by him.

“This is not the way to win an argument, Lex,” Superman announced as he quickly extracted Lex from the falling car, scooping him into his arms and flying off.

Lex frowned at Superman as they cleared the tops of the trees, and the heart-breaking sound of $300,000 worth of Italian engineering blowing up reached Lex's ears.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said.

The gelid winter nipped at Lex‘s ears as they hovered in the air in the middle of a gray winter afternoon.

Superman was not amused. Clark was even less so.

“Most people, when they want to make a point about going on vacation, they just say so. They don’t drive their cars over the side of the road and nearly give their partners a fucking heart attack.”

Lex refused to think about how hot Clark was when he cursed, and scowled instead. “You think I did this on purpose?”

Clark’s pursed lips spoke volumes in a manner eerily reminiscent of Martha Kent.

Lex decidedly did not sulk. “I’ll have you know that I liked that car -- and my briefcase was in there.”

“Yeah, well, I like you too, but you don’t see me throwing Lex Corp off an overpass just to get your attention, do you?”

The glint in Clark’s eye worried Lex.

“I have to get to the plant,” Lex said kicking his legs fruitlessly in Clark’s Baywatch-esque rescue hold.

“So I suppose it’s a good thing that my meeting with the deputy mayor is over, right?”

Lex blinked because he felt grinning would be wrong. Besides it was cold and his lips were beginning to chap. “So, you have the rest of the day off?”

“Barring Lois tracking me down and dragging me back by the scruff of my neck, I’m all yours.”

“Then I guess the plant can survive without me for a little bit longer,” Lex said.

As they sped off in the direction of Smallville, Lex didn’t bother to hide his full-blown smirk, either, until he was forced to tuck his head against Clark’s neck to keep the windburn to a minimum.

*

The snow crunched underfoot as Clark deposited them at the back door rather than announcing their arrival by landing on the front steps of the Luthor estate, and Lex took a second to straighten his dark blue wool coat and brush away the invisible post-flight wrinkles.

He had standards to uphold.

Of course, Lex’s entire staff was back in Metropolis, ostensibly doing what they did to earn their paychecks, but Lex knew the law of averages well enough. The appearance of Superman and Lex Luthor in Smallville together would not go unnoticed by even the most willfully blind resident.

The bleak Kansas winter and its minimalist landscape was something out of a Coen brothers’ comedy, but Clark didn’t even pretend to look cold. Lex frowned. The cold was unbearable, and Lex’s ears were numb enough that he had to run his hand over his head to make sure they were still there.

“Next time, we drive,” he said, rifling through his pockets for keys.

Clark rolled his eyes. “You could’ve driven yourself if you hadn’t decided to see if the Ferrari’s had wings.”

“The Ferrari is streamlined for speed efficiency,” Lex quoted. “I was just seeing how far that went.”

“Cars are not meant to fly, Lex.”

“Details.” Lex waved a hand dismissively.

There were icicles hanging over the entryway, and the lock on the door required a zap of heat vision before Lex could slide the key home.

The temperature in the kitchen wasn’t just frigid; as far as Lex was concerned it had been taking lessons from Clark’s AI in the North Pole and was bringing new meaning to the words ‘freezing one’s ass off.’ He wasn’t altogether sure he could feel a difference in the temperature as they stepped inside, and while Clark shut the door, Lex briskly crossed the room to shut off the silent alarm.

His breath hung in the air before him, and he blinked several times to allow his eyes to adjust to the dull gray winter light that seeped through the curtains. The all-steel kitchen seemed decidedly morgue-like despite the stone walls and large windows.

Lex rubbed at his arms to increase circulation and smirked to himself when he felt Clark’s warm breath against the nape of his neck and large hands batting his own away to take up the vigorous rubbing.

“We need to turn on the heat,” Clark said.

“I obviously hadn’t thought of that,” Lex deadpanned.

“We should probably get a fire going, too, since I have no idea how long it’s takes for a place this size to heat up.”

“It’s going to take forever, and then some. You might not want to make any plans for the next millennium.”

Clark continued to speak as though Lex hadn’t said anything. Lex hated that -- except for when he found the alpha male routine troublingly erotic. “And then we’ll need food.”

“And this is the part where we descend en masse on your mother and raid the refrigerator,” Lex finished.

“Sounds like a plan to me,” Clark said, ceasing in his attentions to Lex’s blood circulation and heading for the back door.

“Were you planning on walking to the farm?” Lex asked, his amusement evident.

Even in the dim light, Lex caught Clark’s eye roll. Clearly the proximity to his mother had that effect on him.

“Generally you need wood for a fire,” Clark said pointedly.

“Assuming that I didn’t have gas fireplaces out here, which strangely enough I don’t, don’t you think you should at least change first, or is Superman finally available for hire? Because if so, I‘d like to talk about possible collaborations between the Last Son of Krypton and the Prodigal Son of Metropolis.”

Clark‘s hand slipped from the doorknob. “What kind of collaborations did you have in mind?”

“The kind that make their own heat.”

Clark looked thoughtful for approximately 0.13 seconds, and then Lex found himself pressed between a rough stone wall and a very hard superhero.

“I had no idea you were so business-minded,” Lex said as Clark’s mouth descended towards his own. Clark’s tongue was warm and thick as it swept through Lex’s mouth, ratcheting up Lex’s body temperature incrementally.

“I tend towards the entrepreneurial side,” Clark muttered as his thick fingers worked at the buttons of Lex’s coat.

Lex pawed at the hidden openings of the garish blue suit and inhaled sharply as cold fingers slipped between the buttons of his shirt. “I’m always open to new ideas,” he said. “Make me an offer.”

*

Snow flurries danced before the windshield, and outside the wind howled. Inside the truck, Lex sighed. Putting the Ferrari through something like this would have been cruel and usual punishment, and the International Automotive Appreciation Society would probably have suspended him, so perhaps it was best that it had met a fiery end earlier in the day.

Out the corner of his eye, Lex watched as Clark concentrated on getting them back to the castle in one piece. This was not what he had meant when he’d suggested they take a vacation, however, they were out of the city; and Lex finally understood the maxim that insisted he would have to take it where he could get it.

At least they were safe from the elements in the truck, and Lex felt a small smile turning up the corners of his mouth.

Thank god he hadn’t turned it into scrap metal all those times that Clark had pissed him off when they were younger. It was a good truck. For what it was.

There were many things that Lex wouldn’t admit to, even under the great duress, but a certain idea kept creeping into his thoughts, and he shifted in the passenger seat irritably attempting to avoid it.

Between the heated air pouring out of the vents and the warm apple pie in his lap, Lex should have been quite content. The leather headrest supported his head in a tolerably adequate fashion, and the sound quality of the stereo wasn’t quite Bang and Olufsen, but considering the elements outside, Lex should not have been in the mood to complain. But he could always find a fault, and a small voice kept saying that this was actually a very good car. An excellent car in fact, which was obviously why Lex had bought it in the first place. However, the thought kept insisting that not only was the Ford F150 a good car, but perhaps Lex should see into getting one of his own, and that was simply uncalled for.

Lex was not going to drive a domestic car.

Ten years later he was still coming to grips with having bought this one for Clark.

“I can’t believe you still have this.” Clark’s voice broke through Lex’s internal battle at just the right time.

“Which ‘this’ would we be referring to?” Lex asked.

“The truck, Lex.”

Lex smiled to himself. “It wasn’t as though I was going to drive it. What exactly did you think I had done with it?”

“I don’t know. Returned it. Recycled it.”

“It’s a truck, Clark, not plastic bottle.”

Clark glanced at Lex briefly. “Yeah, but I mean, -- why’d you keep it? You could’ve given it away or something.”

“You mean why did I keep it when I knew I could never give it to you?”

Clark was silent for a moment. “Yeah.”

Lex shrugged. “Call me sentimental.”

“You’re a lot of things, Lex, I don’t know if I’d call you sentimental.”

Lex glanced down at the pie in his lap and the watch on his wrist before turning and looking out the window into the back roads blackness “All right, then let’s just say I had hope.”

He jumped slightly when he felt Clark’s hand cover his own.

“Hope is pretty important,” Clark said squeezing Lex’s hand.

Lex nodded silently as they drove through the gates of the castle. “So I’ve heard.”

Clark rolled to a stop at the front doors and let go of Lex’s hand to shift the truck into park. He unbuckled his seatbelt and turned to Lex in his seat. “So, since we’re already here, how do you feel about staying for a few days?”

The truck rocked slightly from the force of the wind, and large snowflakes spattered softly against the windshield.

“It’s not quite Mauritius,” Lex said as he unfastened his seatbelt, “but we have pie, I can be flexible.”

Clark smiled as he turned off the engine. “Cool. Tomorrow we can go ice skating.”

Lex froze, holding the pie in his lap. “No, Clark. No ice skating.”

“What do you mean no? You love ice skating.”

“ No, you love ice skating. I consider ice skating the work of the devil. Or worse, my father. He always loved ice skating and hockey and anything where you could openly batter somebody and have people applaud.”

“It won’t be that bad, Lex.”

“No, Clark.”

“Please?”

“No.”

“You just need to practice.”

“Clark, no.”

“Just think about it.”

“Okay -- I’ve thought about it, the answer is still no.”

“Lex, you need to be flexible.”

“My flexibility has nothing to do with this, Clark.”

“But it could.”

“Only if you want to sleep outdoors tonight.”

Clark’s sigh was one of long suffering. “Will you think about it?”

“I’ll think about it when you agree to let me take us someplace where the average low is 80 degrees,” Lex said. “My choice.”

“That’s a serious hardship,” Clark smirked.

Lex nodded. “I know how cagey you superheroes can be.”

“Okay.”

“Okay?”

“Okay.”

“Okay, but no hats with weird colors.”

Clark laughed. “Deal.”

“We could’ve just had this conversation this morning,” Lex pointed out.

“True,” Clark conceded. “But, then I’d never get you to wear a hat with pom-poms.”

“I never agreed to that,” Lex shot back sharply.

“No, you just said nothing with weird colors.”

“I hate you sometimes,” Lex sighed.

“I know what you mean,” Clark agreed sagaciously as he leaned over and kissed Lex lightly. “I love you, too.”

-end-

Notes: Thanks to

rosenho for beta duty and encouragement. Title take from the Norah Jones song of the same name. Icon courtesy of

semisuper.