Well, here’s the fourth part of my story. I really hope yall enjoy it! Oh, and don’t forget to review!
Lara watched in horror as the man approached the sleeping boy, and before she was completely aware of what she was doing, headed full-speed toward the window. The man whispered two words, which sounded to her like “abra cadabra”, and a green light began to form at the end of the odd-looking stick.
Must go faster…must go faster…not going to make it…
The green light outlined the sleeping form of the boy just as she crashed through the closed window. The man turned toward the sound, but had no time to do anything before they were slammed down onto the floor. No, not just onto the floor, but through the floor. Their crash landing on the first floor made a hole about his size, for he landed face-up into the hole with a sickening crunch as some of his bones broke.
Lara stood up shakily and backed away in a panic. What had she just done? She had only wanted to tackle him to the ground – of the second floor, not the first – and stop him from getting away. She looked up as she heard voices coming down the stairs. She had to get out of here. Looking back down at the man, she saw one hand outstretched and the strange-looking stick on the floor not far from it. Instinctively she grabbed it and took off through the hole she made in the ceiling, through the now open window, and into the air, headed for Clark’s cousin Melissa’s summer home.
She was only too glad to notice that she had left her window open. Lara really didn’t feel like being around anyone. She took the stick and hid it in a frequently used drawer in her bedroom. She’d finally found a reason for taking it. It was a reminder to her, a physical reminder of what she was capable of if she did not master control of her abilities. Lara then went into the bathroom. The last thing she wanted was to have to explain the shards of glass that were probably tangled in her hair.
*****
A few hours later, Lara heard a knock on her door. She cringed when she heard Clark’s voice calling her.
“Lara, are you in there?”
“Yes,” she sighed. “Just a second.” She got off her bed and unlocked her door.
His face was just as strained as his voice. “Mind if I come in?” he asked.
“Uhm, sure, I guess,” she replied nervously. He shut the door behind him and sat in her desk chair. She sat on the edge of her bed, facing him.
“Lara, what happened today?” he asked her, straight to the point. Their eyes were locked.
“What are you talking about?” she asked him, feigning a look of confusion. He broke eye contact, and she could have sworn that she saw a flicker of disappointment on his face.
“I heard a commotion on the other side of town today, and when I got there I couldn’t believe what I saw. The upstairs window of the teenage boy’s room was completely smashed in and there was a hole the size of a grown man in the floor. The man himself was in a hole on the first floor just below. And I found this…”
He pulled her necklace, the one piece of jewelry she always wore, out of his pocket. “Be glad I found it and not the authorities.”
Her face paled.
“Now, Lara, do you want to tell me what’s going on?”
Her eyes were bright with tears she was trying hard not to shed. She turned away, afraid that she might break down at any moment.
“Lara, listen to me. I want to know what’s going on so that I can help you. I know I’m not your father, but I do care about you a great deal…”
“I don’t want to talk about it, Clark, okay? Just leave me alone, please.” Lara didn’t know how much more she could stand before breaking down.
“Lara…”
“I SAID I DON’T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT!” Lara yelled and stormed out into the hall. Clark just waited patiently in her desk chair. A moment later a very red-faced Lara stormed back in. “This is my room. You get out,” she said.
Clark stood up resignedly and headed for the door. “Just so you know, the guy who fell through the floor broke some bones and could well be paralyzed – he was still unconscious when I left – but the boy was already dead when I got there, and no one can tell his parents what happened.”
Lara had never felt worse in her thirteen years of life. Well, maybe once: the day she found out her parents were dead and she was being sent here, to Earth, to live with her father’s first cousin, her only living blood relative, Kal-El. That was undisputedly the worst day of her life. Still, the guilt she felt now was almost unbearable. Looking at the clock, she saw that it was definitely late. Like it or not, she did need to get some rest. Sighing, she crawled into bed and after a couple of hours finally managed to fall asleep.
*****
“No…no…I didn’t…didn’t do anything…no…Clark…I didn’t…NO!”
Lois and Clark awoke at 3:30 that morning to Lara screaming in her sleep. They raced to her bedside and tried to wake her. Finally she bolted upright, sweating and crying. Lois, a step closer to her than Clark was, just held Lara for a moment as she cried. “Shh, it’s okay…it was just a nightmare…it’s okay…” she comforted her. Finally Lara calmed down. Clark sat on the bed with her and gently turned her face toward him.
“What was your dream about, Lara?” he asked gently.
“Just…something that happened…today…and you were accusing me…telling me it was all my fault. That boy…he said that I wasn’t fast enough…that it was my fault he’s…he’s…” She couldn’t bear to finish that sentence.
Clark embraced her, and then said, “You know, sweetheart, as Superman, I have seen some pretty horrific things, things that nightmares are made of. I think that if I didn’t have you and Lois to come home to every night, someone to talk to about what I see, I’d go insane. It’s been my experience that talking about the things that frighten me tends to make those things a little less scary and helps me to be able to sleep at night. Are you sure you don’t want to talk about what happened today?”
Lara stopped and thought for a moment. Much as she didn’t want to admit it, what Clark was saying did make a lot of sense. Taking a deep breath, she made her decision. “Okay, fine, here’s what happened. I was in the air when…”
She told them what happened, up to the part where she came home. Lois and Clark were both amazed at what she was saying. At first neither one of them knew what to say. After a brief pause, Clark took Lara’s trembling hands into his own. “Look at me,” he said. “You are not to blame for what happened. Do you hear me?”
“But it IS my fault! It’s all my fault! I could’ve saved him, but I wasn’t fast enough…”
“ENOUGH!” Clark shouted, jumping to his feet “Lara, you must understand this because it is very important. No matter how hard you try, you cannot save everybody. People have died because I was a few seconds too late to save them, and it kills me every time. That’s part of the price of having the abilities we do.” He paused for a moment to let this sink in.
“Now, we’ve all had a long night. Let’s get some sleep, okay? We’ll talk some more about this tomorrow.” Clark leaned over and gave her a kiss on her forehead. “Goodnight.”
“Night, Clark,” she said. When she woke up the next morning, she realized that Clark was right. Talking about what had happened actually did help her get a good restful night’s sleep.
Okay well that’s part 4. I hoped yall enjoyed it. If so, please let me know! I love feedback!
