CHAPTER FOUR: x-ray

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ASTER MAVERICK HAD BEEN SURPRISED TO SEE THAT IN THE NEWSPAPER; LEX LUTHOR HAD ROBS A PLACE. Which, confused Aster. Why the fuck would one of the richest men in the world rob a bank.

Another thing, was that, unfortunately, Aster woke up late. Leaving him to be late to one of his classes. Which the teacher wanted to speak to him about, as he was never late.

Aster had been up all night, thinking of he last time he had seen Clark. He had gotten in trouble, for letting Lana take his shift. Because, apparently, she was already working that day. Lana got fired, and as did Aster.

Lana tried to take all the blame.

"Damn it, damn it," Aster muttered, moving to the gym room. "I'm gonna be fucking held back at this rate."

He was late. To fucking gym class. Practically half the credit is showing up.

"Maverick!" The teacher yelled.

"Yes?" The boy stopped his rushing, cringing at the volume the teacher's voice was at.

"Why are you late?!"

"Well, I woke up late, and-"

"Go get changed. You're next. Kent!"

Okay. Aster thought before rushing to the boy's locker-room. He unlocked a locker, removing his shirt and long jeans to replace them with the gym clothing; red shorts and a yellow tee with the school's logo. "I can't fucking believe this."

Aster hadn't thought that, it would be worst. His day stared of shitty already. He cursed as he pulled out, the folded clothes from his locker. He had first, put on the red shirts, sliding his feet back into the sneakers, the reaching for the shirt and pulling it on.

When he entered the room, Clark had been lifted off the floor by two other students. Clark seemed to be in a daze, staring at the wall. But, slowly his eyes scanned the wall, before landing on Aster.

"You okay, Kent?" The PE teacher questioned.
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Aster had been annoyed and frustrated. After having been fired from the cafe, he had to find another job. Which proved to be difficult. He had thought about stopping by Mrs. Greer place, she was nice. Even if she said she wasn't hiring, maybe at some point she would.

But, when he entered the store, for a moment, he had bene unable to find her. "Mrs. Greer?" He questioned.

"Aster," the woman's voice called back suddenly behind him.

Aster jumped, putting handover his heart. "You scared me."

The woman smiled. "I'm sorry."

He apologized. "Um, I was hoping that, you could help me?"

"Oh, are you looking for something?"

"A job? I just, I know that you are mostly the one who works here, and sometimes your daughter," Aster didn't notice the woman's face shift, how momentarily she looked happy, at the mention of Tina. "So, I thought, maybe, you could use some help?"

"I'll see," the woman smiled.

Well, at least she didn't say a definite no. Asher thought.
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At school, Aster had been surprised when Tina Greer walked up to him. She was smiling. "Aster."

"Tina," Aster greeted back, forcing his confusion away. He smiled back at her. "How are you?"

"I'm...fine. Um, so, my mom told me that you wanted to work at the antique shop," Tina speaks. "My mom's moving to Metropolis full-time."

"Oh," aster wondered why the wouldn't didn't tell him that the day prior.

"But, she wants me to run it. So, I figured, since you were looking for a job, you and I could work together." Tina smiled.

"Really? Wow, Tina, that's-" he knew that Tina really wanted to be friends with Lana. Had no clue if this was one of her plans to get close to Lana. He's felt relief when he recalled he didn't mention that Lana was also looking. "That's great. Thank you."

The girl was still looking at him, hopeful.

"Uh, listen, Tina, I have to get to class, earlier. I was late yesterday, so, some of the teachers want me there earlier. But, once again, thank you."

Aster walked away, not noticing how the girl's face shifted to anger.
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"I swear, life is so boring! Maybe I should join a sports team," Aster muttered. "Finding a job is proving to difficult."
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Aster had decided to visit Clark. Despite the other liking Lana, Aster still has a crush on Clark. And Clark always anger to cheer him up. Plus, sometimes he had felt that, Clark needed more people than just his parents and his two best friends; Chloe Sullivan and Pete Ross. And now, Lex Luthor. Which, wasn't a bad thing. But, Clark smiled a lot more around them. And Aster loved to see Clark's smile.

He carefully walked the porch, when spotting Clark seated. Clark looked up, staring at him. He said nothing, only keeping his eyes on the darker-eyed boy.  "Clark, what's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?" Aster questioned, worried. Did he look weird? Did Clark realize that he liked him?

"Sorry, it's nothing. I wasn't sure it was you," Clark spoke.

"This is a bad time," Aster realized.

"No." Clark stood up, quickly. Not wanting the other to leave. He slide down, making space for Aster.

"I was out jogging, didn't want to go home. I thought, to come here."

"Oh, I just saw Lana leave-"

"I'm actually here for you," Aster shyly admitted.

"You and your parents get into a fight?" Clark questioned, confused.

Aster shook his head. "No. Just-" he cut himself off. "You know, it's...I told them about how I was fired. They assumed it was to do with how other people didn't want to hire me because I'm gay. Said, I should 'take it back'. Whatever the hell that means."

"I'm sorry, Aster," Clark speaks, sounding sincere. Sounding very apologetic. Just like how he always sounded.

"I swear, it's like...it's like everyone could see right through me. Especially my parents, and yet , when it comes to my sexuality, it's liked they don't even...know who I am."

"You ever feel like that?" Aster asked.

"More than you know," Clark admitted.

Aster realized what Clark was speaking of, rather quickly. "You ever try to find your biological parents?"

"Not really. I figure they're a million years away from my life now," Clark looks up at the sky.

"If you could ask them a question, what would you ask?" And, Aster doesn't know why he asked that. He doesn't think he and Clark are close enough for him to ask such a question. But, he can't help himself. He just wants to hear Clark talk more, and he doesn't think about what he's saying.

He should. Before he says something stupid. Like accidentally admitting his feelings for the darker-colored hair boy. He should think before speaking, before he has the chance of possibly offending Clark. If his questions of Clark's birth parents didn't already offend him. "If, I'm not, you know, overstepping."

Clark smiles at Aster. "You're not."

You definitely are. Clark's just to nice to say it.

"What happened," Clark suddenly says. And Aster almost offers about the question he asked. "Why'd they let me go? How do I make sense of all the strangeness in my life?"

"I guess neither of us will ever get a straight answer," Aster says. He thinks, that, maybe he's being dramatic, but, it had been the first time he spoke to anyone about it. His parents avoid any conversation that has to do with his sexuality.

"I hope you find what you're looking for," Clark says.

Aster doesn't even know what he's looking for. He laughed. "I should be saying that to you."
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Aster had been at the graveyard, Lana had went to her mother's grave, while Aster went to his aunt's. He glanced over at Lana,  not being a far away distance. But, given her some space to herself.

That was until, a family blond-haired figured walked up to her. "Lana."

Aster thought about walking away. Especially as Whitney walked closer.  But, after a handful of seconds, he noticed that Lana stepped back. So, he quickly advanced towards her. 

"Whitney-" Aster called out, right behind Lana.

Only to see Whitney's face shift, to Tina. "I do." The girl girl ground out, immediately McIntyre forward to grab her.

Aster pulled Lana back, pushing Lana behind him. Tina gripped onto the bracelet on his wrist, slipping it off as he pushed her back. "What the fuck-"

Tina slipped his bracelet onto her wrist, her shorter frame shifting into his taller one. His eyes widen.

"Aster," Lana pulled him back, confused, only seeing that Tina was about to hurt him.

Tina wrapped her hands around Lana's throat, tightening her grasp. Aster moved to take Tina's hand off her throating, searching for something to knock her out.  The only stone there, was the headstones. Apparently, the groundskeeper took the job of keeping the graveyard clean, seriously.

Tina, still in Aster's form, looked sad. "Why couldn't you just stay out of it? I thought you were likely to be here. With her."  She sounded angry. Or, well, he? Aster was confused on how he worked.

"What the fuck?" He repeated, instead, bring the threat that Tina was, and pressing two fingers to Lana's pressure point. "Lana? Lana?" He question, worried. Terrified that she was dead.

And, he knew he should have looked harder, probably just have hit Tina in the first place. But, he had been shocked to see such an impossible thing happen.
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Aster groaned, pained. He tried to move, to sit up, not even recalling when he had fallen to sleep. But, when he reached out, searching for the lamp light, his hand instead hit something much harder, and then, something, else. It was softer than whatever he had first brushed his hand over. He opened his eyes, looking over, only to try and push himself back with a sharp yell.

Next to him, was a human skeleton.

His head hurt a lot more when the memories that, had to have happened, at the most an hour ago, hit him. He hit the stone slab, trying to put it up and off of him.

He couldn't.

"Lana! Lana!" He yelled out, hoping the girl heard him. He as worried for her. "Lana! Lana! Tina, I swear to God! Let me out!" He hit the slab, of course nothing happened.
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Clark had apparently, saved them.

"God, I'd rather die," Aster muttered lowly.

"Oh come on," Lana smiled. "At least you got to see him."

"Yeah. And he got to see me get my ass handed to me, by, some...what? Shapeshifter?"

"Lana," Chloe Sullivan called out, rushing to the girl. "Um, I did some digging." She pulled  tape from her bag.

"Oh, my god," Lana gasped, when reading the title.

Aster looked up at Clark, slowly approaching him. "So..." he awkwardly spoke. "I guess I should thank you for saving Lana and I, again."

Clark smiled, nervously. "No, you don't have to thank me."

Aster looked back, glancing around. When he has practically been tackled in a hug. He had stumbled back.

"You do realize you were about to knock me down, correct?" Aster sarcastically asked, when Whitney had wrapped him up in a hug.

Aster awkwardly waved at Clark, goodbye as Whitney practically dragged him over to Lana.
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{1933}