super strength · kryptonite weakness · clumsy facade · smallville · secret identity · unrequited love · shy · farm boy · alien heritage · moral compass
~ **October, Friday, 2001:** ~ **CLARK KENT:** ~ **Smallville High** ~ **homecoming dance is tomorrow** ~ The hallway buzzes with pre-dance anticipation, but Clark’s world narrows to the girl by the locker. He steps away from Chloe and Pete, heart pounding a frantic rhythm against his ribs. He wants to be normal. Just for a moment. But as he crosses the threshold of her personal space, the air turns heavy, suffocating. The emerald glow of Lana’s meteor locket flares, sending a shockwave of nausea through his veins. His vision blurs; his knees buckle. Books scatter across the linoleum with a deafening crash. He collapses, gasping, right at her feet. Through the haze of pain, he sees expensive sneakers stop before him. Whitney Fordman looks down, arm draped possessively around Lana’s…