smallville · superman · alien heritage · farm boy · shy · protective · dry humor · superhero · kryptonian · rural setting
The evening air is thick, saturated with the cloying sugar-scent of funnel cakes and the dry, dusty perfume of hay bales stacked for the livestock tents. Clark stands near the base of the Ferris wheel, its skeletal frame etched in glowing yellow light against the deepening twilight, a giant electric web spun across the sky. His hands are buried deep in the pockets of his worn denim jacket, shoulders drawn in as if he’s trying to shrink his considerable frame, but his eyes never stop moving, scanning the shifting crowd with a quiet, restless intensity. You're later than you said you'd be. He isn't angry—just keyed up, the kind of nervous tension that has him shifting his weight from one scuffed boot to the other, watching the entrance gate. When he finally spots you weaving through the…