SOMEBODY ELSE'S SKY
by Dynlubio

E-mail : [email protected]
Rating; PG
Spoiler: Post-Exodus
Disclaimer: Don’t own anything. Don’t sue. Please.
Summary: A birthday wish and the theory of infinite halves.
A/N: Inspired by "Black" by Aaron Lewis and Chal’s To His or Her Own. Written for Lissette.
Beta: Jade and Li. Thanks!

***

"Make a wish."

It wasn’t an order but a kind of tease--a playful, light and not-meant-to-be-taken-seriously comment. What could he possibly wish for when he supposedly had everything he wanted? He had every physical need met, like any normal person deserved to have. But he, of course, wasn't normal. Lex sighed. There was a small cake with a single candle in front of him, no doubt she hadn't wanted to hurt his feelings by reminding him just how old he was. He pushed it away and stared at its bearer. When he spoke her name, it was soft, gently reprimanding. "Lana."

She smiled. "Come on," she persuaded. "You don’t even have to tell me what it is."

He stood up and walked to the window. His white dress shirt was slightly un-tucked, his tie long gone. On his birthday night it was a cloudless sky filled with stars. "I don’t wish on birthday cakes."

In her reflection, a pout tugged on pink lips and her eyes pleaded. "Not even chocolate ones? Or one I practiced to make for hours?" she asked, fishing for sympathy.

Lex turned to face her, having the need to see her response. He raised an eyebrow. "You baked me a cake?"

She bit her lower lip. "Yes, I did." Great, Lana, she told herself. I finally know what lying through your teeth sounds like. Thanks a lot!

A short laugh escaped him. "You’d make a terrible witness on the stand," he spoke out loud.

It was Lana's turn to sigh. "Lex, indulge me. Make a wish, blow the damn candle and I’ll leave you alone to mope all night."

He didn’t respond for so long that she was afraid he’d forgotten she was there. She knew she was pushing it with the cake but practically forcing him to be happy on his birthday was definitely something that couldn't be achieved unless he chose to be.

"Why are you doing this?" The question, if asked with less frustration and more annoyance would’ve made her mad.

She walked to the window as well, making sure there was maybe ten feet between them. "Because... you have to live, Lex."

He faced her again, giving her the full impact of his green eyes, staring at her intensely. "As you have?"

Lana looked away, afraid he’d see through the cheerful exterior. "Yes." But she wasn't fooling anyone, he'd see through it anyway, as he always had. "But that answer won’t hold up in court, either."

They stood by the window, staring at the stars outside, twinkling, dancing their quiet dance. "Look at us," he whispered. "Do you feel as--" he stopped, for he couldn’t describe what he was feeling at the moment.

Lana opened her mouth, paused, and asked softly, "Have you seen that movie with Meg Ryan and Tim Robbins?"

"I’m not a big fan of movies," he answered, unable to look away.

She shrugged. "In the movie, Meg Ryan’s character said something about the theory of infinite halves. Right now, we’re standing like this. I’m going to cross half of that distance." She took a couple big steps towards him, which brought her about five feet away from him. "But there’s still this distance, so I take half of that." She stepped closer. "And half of that..."

She was a little more than a step away from him now, almost touching, almost close. Lex inhaled sharply, his mouth suddenly dry. "What’s the theory?"

Her eyes sparkled with much more intensity than the stars outside did. "That no matter how many halves I take, I will never get to you... unless you take the other half."

And there it was--the promise of something he stopped believing in a long time ago. It was one step away, waiting for him to trust, hope, wish...everything he hadn’t done in so long.

Lana stood patiently, silently asking him to meet her halfway, to realize they were both suffering and they could help each other--that they were friends before the pain started and they could still be when it ends, eventually.

"I have to say," he said, no longer in the hushed tone they were both speaking in a second ago. "You’d make a good lawyer someday. And all of this to get me to make a wish!" He chuckled and walked back to the table where the cake sat and the single flame of the candle glowed. He closed his eyes briefly and blew the flame out.

Lana smiled a little. It wasn’t the half she expected, but it was close. "I lied, Lex," she admitted, a coy smile forming on her lips.

His head turned towards her, a confused look on his face. "About what?"

"I’m not going to leave you alone to mope all night."

He was amused. "I thought as much," he nodded. "So, what are your plans?"

"Let’s have our cake and eat it too," she suggested.

Minutes later, with the remnants of the cake between them, they sat facing the stars. Lex realized he had never had a birthday as good as this one. And he owed it all to her. He glanced at Lana. She looked well...better than she did ever since Clark left her with a less than cryptic reason. He’d like to think tonight made her feel better, that somehow; he had a hand in it.

"What did you wish for, Lex?" she suddenly asked, her eyes fixed on the stars.

"I’m not telling you," he answered, smiling.

Lana propped up her elbow on the arm of the couch they were sitting on and leaned her cheek against her palm. "And I thought you had everything."

He stared at her. "Almost."

It was at that moment he understood that despite everything that had happened; he was still a lucky bastard. If not, he wouldn’t be sitting here with Lana. He also realized how beautiful she was--as a girl, a woman and a person; that he was lucky to have her, to actually witness her ‘being’ in this mad chaotic world that was his life.

Lex reached out to hold her hand not halfway, but all the way. He squeezed it tightly. "Thank you for making this birthday bearable."

She squeezed back. "You’re welcome."

They sat there, holding hands, the distance finally crossed, some pieces picked up. A star raced across the sky in a blaze.

Lana gasped in delight. "A falling star!"

"Make a wish."

I know you’ll be a star in somebody else’s sky

But why... why... why can’t it be mine?

*dynlubio 092703 5:55 pm