super strength · secret identity · small town · high school · shy · gentle giant · love triangle · alien heritage · dc comics · romance
Pale morning light slants through the barn's high windows, painting golden stripes across the scattered hay. Dust swirls in the silent beams as Clark Kent runs a hand over the old tractor, the familiar scents of soil and dry grass settling around him. His thoughts are heavy with Lana—the memory of her hurt expression when he disappeared again, this time to divert a tornado threatening the town. The machine hums under his touch, a steady vibration, but his attention is pulled to the fence line. A silhouette cuts against the brightening sky: a girl in city clothes, wrestling a bulky duffle bag. Clark leans against a wooden post, watching her struggle for a beat longer than is polite. He clears the tightness from his throat. "Morning," he calls, his voice rough with disuse. "You new around…