The Supergirl
of Smallville - Chapter 22
by Team Acenaut
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DOWNLOADED FROM
http://www.superwomenmania.com/storybank
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OCTOBER ...
"Suzy? What are you
doing here?"
Coming out of the art room
at the end of the final period, Lana was surprised to see her friend waiting
for her in the hallway. Suzy usually
went to cheerleading practice right after school.
"Come with
me." Suzy grabbed Lana's wrist and
started off down the hallway, weaving her way among the other students with her
friend in tow. Curious, Lana let Suzy drag
her to the lobby by the main entrance.
"There!"
Suzy pointed to a large
poster advertising next week's Homecoming Dance. Taped to the wall beside the poster were
several sign-up sheets for volunteers to decorate the gym, sell tickets, or
serve refereshments.
Lana stared at the poster
for a few moments, baffled. "Okay
-- what am I supposed to be looking at?"
Smiling at Lana's
mystification, Suzy took a pen from her purse and wrote "Lana Lang"
on the sign-up sheet for the refereshment table.
"Suzy! What's the
big idea?"
"Trust me,
Lana," said Suzy. "You'll
thank me for this."
Lana rolled her eyes. "I know that look. This is one of your clever little schemes,
isn't it? Tell me what it's all
about."
"Well," said
Suzy, "you know where they always put the refreshment table, don't
you?"
"Sure -- at the back
of the room, near the stage."
"That's right -- next
to the DJ's table. And do you know who
the DJ is going to be?"
Lana's eyes widened. "Don't tell me --
"
"That's right -- Lex Luthor."
"Are you sure? He never said anything about that to
me."
"Mr. Weatherly just
asked him an hour ago."
"How do you
know?"
Suzy smiled. "I have my sources. But that's not important. What's important is that you and Lex will be together all evening."
Lana looked doubtful. "I don't know, Suzy. I told you -- Lex
and I are just friends."
Suzy snorted. "Come on. I've seen the way he looks at you. And I know you like him. I'm tired of waiting for one of you to make
the first move."
"Well, yeah -- I like
him. I'm just not sure I like him -- you
know -- " Lana
blushed. "As a -- as a -- “
"Doesn't
matter. It's just a dance, for heaven's sake. Trust me, this is perfect. I'll bet anything Lex
will ask you to dance before the evening's over. And if he doesn't ... well, just remember,
the last dance is always ladies' choice.
And afterwards, the two of you can go for a stroll in the moonlight ...
hold hands ... "
"And then what?"
"For gosh sake, Lana,
do I have to spell it out for you? You
figure it out. Just remember what they
say -- if you've never been kissed in high school ... "
*
* * * * * * *
"Well," sighed
Tami. "So much
for the state championship."
The homecoming game
against Martindale had ended half an hour ago.
Smallville had lost, 13 to 7. The field was silent now under a cloudy
sky. Several of the cheerleaders stood
huddled behind the empty bleachers..
Jenny glanced at her
watch. "Are you sure your mom
remembered to come pick us up? You said
she'd be here at 3:00, and it's almost quarter
past."
"She'll be
here," said Suzy. "She had
some errands to do. She's just running a
little late."
"Where's
"He's with Lex," said Suzy.
"Getting tutored so he can earn back his
eligibility. Coach's
orders."
A shout rang across the
empty field. "Tami! Wait up!"
The girls turned. Pete Ross was trotting toward them, his
duffel bag slung over one shoulder.
"Hi, Pete," said
Suzy. "You played a good
game."
"Thanks," said
Pete. "Didn't
make much difference, though. Oh
well, better luck next year." He
turned to Tami. "So I'll pick you
up around 7:30?"
"That'll be
fine," said Tami. "I -- "
But her words were drowned
out by the roar of an approaching engine.
Jake Ryder came speeding across the parking lot
astride his Harley. He slowed to a halt,
cut the throttle, and grinned wolfishly over the rims of his dark glasses.
"Hello, ladies,"
he purred. "I heard about the game,
and I thought I'd offer one of you a ride as a consolation." He was gazing into Tami's wide blue eyes. "How about it, Tami? Just you, me, and the open
road."
"Huh?" Staring at Jake's snug blue jeans, trim
leather jacket, and windswept hair, Tami had hardly been listening. "Oh!" She blushed.
"Well, I was going to go to Suzy's house to listen to records, but
-- " She
turned to Suzy. "Could I take a
rain check?"
Before Suzy could reply,
Pete stepped forward and took Tami by the elbow. "Uh, Tami, could I speak with you for a
second?" Moving out of earshot of
the others, he began speaking in low, urgent tones..
"Look, I don't think
that's such a good idea," he said.
"You know Jake's gotten a couple of warnings for speeding. And when he leaned forward just now, to shut
off the engine, I'm pretty sure I saw a flask in his hip pocket. Maybe he's been drinking."
"Why, Pete
Ross!" Tami's eyes flashed indignantly. "Jake is a perfectly safe rider. You're just jealous, that's all."
"N-no!" Pete stammered.
"I'm just worried -- "
"Hmpf!"
Tami snorted. "Just because you're
taking me to the dance tonight, that doesn't make you the boss of me. You're not my father -- and you're not my
boy-friend either!" With a toss of
her ponytail, she turned and strode off.
Pausing to smooth her skirt, she slid behind Jake and wrapped her arms
around his chest. Smirking, Jake opened
the throttle and roared off. The others
stood in awkward silence as the motorcycle rounded a curve and disappeared
behind a rise of land.
Suzy laid a hand on Pete's
arm. "It's all right, Pete,"
she said. "I'm sure she didn't mean
-- "
"I just have a bad
feeling about this," Pete blurted.
He squinted up at the sky.
"I wish there was some way to get in touch with Supergirl. She could keep on eye on them, just in case
anything happens."
"Why don't you call
Chief Parker?" Suzy suggested.
"He could send out a bulletin to all the police cars around
here. And if anyone knows how to get in
touch with Supergirl, he would."
"Good
idea." Pete dug in his pocket and
pulled out some change as he ran back toward the gym. There was a pay phone outside the boys'
locker room.
A horn beeped.
"Oh!" said Suzy.
"There's my mom now." A
station wagon pulled over.
"Where's Lana?"
asked Jenny. "I thought she was
going to join us."
"She was," said
Suzy. "But she phoned to say she
couldn't make it. Some
family thing." She sighed as
she slid into the front seat.
"Lana's my best
friend, and I love her -- but she has got to get out more."
*
* * * * * * *
FIFTEEN HUNDRED MILES AWAY ...
"Look out!"
Supergirl leapt at the boulder careening down the
mountainside. Her arms moved like a pair
of jackhammers as her gloved fists pummeled the rock at super-speed. The boulder exploded into tiny fragments that
rained down on the road amid a cloud of dust.
Hovering in mid-air, Supergirl looked down.
"Are you all right?"
A dozen soldiers stood
brushing rock dust from their fatigues.
They glanced at one another, then looked up.
"Yeah, we're
fine," one of them shouted.
"Thanks!"
Supergirl nodded, then flew back
along the boulder-strewn road. To her
left, the mountain rose steeply, its upper regions
hidden by tatters of mist; to her right, the forested ground descended to a
long moraine. The waters of
Supergirl alighted next to a square-jawed man with
close-cropped gray hair whose fatigues bore the stripes of a captain in the
Army Corps of Engineers.
"You were saying,
Captain?"
The man nodded. "Uh -- thanks, Supergirl." He gestured toward the boulders that littered
the mountain road. "The rockslide
happened around oh-six-hundred. Not much
traffic on the road that early, so there were no casualties. We were called out right away." He shook his head. "What a mess,
huh?"
He jerked his thumb over
his shoulder. A line of trucks and
bulldozers stretched along the side of the road behind him.
"Even with all this
equipment, it's going to take us days to clean this up. And with the road closed, it's a thirty-mile
detour around the mountain."
Supergirl smiled.
"Well, I think I can save you some time. Tell your men to stand back."
"Fall back!" the
captain shouted. The soldiers moved down
the road as Supergirl flew back to inspect the heap
of boulders. It's like a giant-sized
version of pick-up sticks, she thought.
If she moved one boulder, it might dislodge others. She'd best start high up
...
Standing by a slab of rock
near the top of the landslide, she carefully slid her hand under a gigantic
boulder and slowly lifted it up. The
soldiers stared, slack-jawed, as she casually raised tons of rock overhead,
then turned to face down the mountain. A
flick of her wrist sent the boulder sailing up, up into the air, dwindling
against the overcast sky before falling to the rock-strewn valley at the foot
of the mountain.
The soldiers broke into
applause and whistles as Supergirl turned to pick up
the next boulder. She proceeded swiftly
but carefully, working her way down the mountainside, tossing one boulder after
another down into the valley below. As
the rockslide dwindled, she worked faster and faster until she was a blur of
blue and red to the gaping soldiers ...
Soon the largest of the
boulders were gone; all that remained on the road was a heap of muddy topsoil
and smaller rocks.
"We can take it from
here," the captain said, stepping forward.
"Thank you for your help."
Supergirl brushed dirt from her gloves. "You're welcome," she said. "Always glad to help our men in
uniform." With a playful salute,
she flew off amid the cheers of the soldiers.
Minutes later, she was
plunging downward, too fast for any normal eye to see, toward the woods behind
"Mom, I'm home,"
she announced, changing back into her regular clothes. "Did you finish my dress for the
dance? I can't wait to see it."
Mrs. Lang came to the
doorway. "It's almost ready,
dear. But Chief Parker left a message
just a few minutes ago. You'd better
check it."
"Oh?" Lana went over to the tape-recorder sitting
on the workbench by the wall. Whenever
Chief Parker wanted to get in touch with Supergirl,
he pressed a special button on his police radio, emitting a low-frequency
signal that activated the tape-recorder and recorded any message he sent out on
the regular police channel. Lana pushed
the playback button.
"
-- keep an eye out for a
boy and a girl on a Harley motorcycle, last seen heading north on
Frowning, Lana turned off
the tape-recorder. A
boy on a motorcycle, huh? She
began changing back into her Supergirl costume.
"Mom, I think I'll
start my patrol a little early today."
*
* * * * * * *
The Harley roared along
the two-lane road running through the open fields north of Smallville. Jake grinned.
Tami's chin was resting on his shoulder, her arms were wrapped tight
around his chest, her thighs were brushing against
his. The Harley put on a burst of speed
as he opened the throttle.
"Jake?" Tami was shouting to make herself heard over
the noise of the engine. "Aren't we
going kind of fast?"
"Scared?" Jake
shouted back.
"No!" said Tami
defensively. In fact, she was starting
to feel a little nervous. Riding with
Jake around Smallville was one thing; sitting behind
him as he raced along the open road was another. "But seriously, don't you think you
should slow down a little?"
Keeping his eyes on the
road, Jake reached into his back pocket and pulled out a sealed flask of
bourbon. "Have a drink," he
shouted, dangling the bottle over his shoulder..
Tami was horrified. Her parents didn't drink, and she'd never had
so much as a sip of beer in her entire life.
"Jake!" she exclaimed.
"Have you -- have you been drinking?"
"Aw, don't be such a
square. C'mon, have some. It'll loosen you up."
"No!" Tami said
firmly. "I want you to stop right
now and let me off!" She didn't
care how far they were from Smallville.
Jake laughed, opening the
throttle even wider as he leaned into an approaching curve.
A horn blared.
"Look out!" Tami
screamed.
*
* * * * * * *
Rocketing upward from her
secret tunnel, Supergirl turned north. Soon she was following
Narrowing her eyes, she
cast her super-vision along the road ahead.
It only took her a moment to spot Jake's Harley, roaring along the empty
road at full throttle. She saw Tami's
blonde ponytail streaming behind her as she clutched Jake from behind. Supergirl was
worried. The road was dry, but she knew
that last night's rain might have drawn patches of oil toward the surface of
the asphalt. If Jake ran into one of those ...
Supergirl picked up speed.
She'd fly ahead, then turn round, stopping Jake on the next straight
stretch of road, just beyond the curve ahead ...
A horn blared. Supergirl heard
Tami scream "Look out!" A
battered pick-up truck, its back loaded with crates of chickens, had come round
the curve, swerving to avoid the Harley.
Now the truck was skidding toward the guardrail along the side of the
road. In another moment, it would be
tumbling down the steep embankment ...
Pursing her lips, Supergirl sent a blast of super-breath toward the side of
the truck, pushing it away from the shoulder of the road. The truck rattled to a halt. Peering through its roof with her x-ray vision,
Supergirl saw the driver pull a red bandana from his
pocket and begin mopping his forehead with a trembling hand. She was about to fly down, to make sure he
was unhurt, but at that moment she heard something above the indignant
squawking and fluttering of the chickens -- a squeal of rubber, a crash, and
Tami's voice again, screaming ...
Instantly, Supergirl was streaking up the road, splitting the air in
her wake with a sound like a thunderclap.
She didn't have far to
go. Just a few hundred feet ahead, she
saw the twisted guardrails, the fresh streaks of rubber on the asphalt. The Harley was tumbling down the long
gravelly slope by the side of the road, while Jake and Tami, thrown high into
the air by the impact, were falling to the ground forty feet below
...
Supergirl swooped down, then turned
up again, approaching Jake and Tami from below so that her momentum would carry
them away from the ground. She slowed
down, knowing that if she was moving too fast when she caught them the sudden
change in speed might injure them. She
wrapped her right arm around Tami's waist, then banked, reaching out with her
left arm and grabbing Jake by the collar of his leather jacket. Higher and higher she flew, gradually braking her speed until she came to a stop several hundred
feet above the ground.
She began descending
gently to the ground below. Jake hung
limply from her arm. He seemed to be in
shock, but unhurt. Tami was sobbing. "My leg ... my leg ...
"
Supergirl set Jake on his feet at the bottom of the bank, not
far from where the Harley lay in a mangled heap. He sat down trembling on the gravelly slope,
breathing heavily and looking around in confusion. Satisfied that he had no serious injuries, Supergirl turned her attention to Tami.
She laid Tami carefully on
a soft patch of grass, then stepped back. She winced as she noted the livid contusion
that ran along Tami's shin. A quick peek
with her x-ray vision confirmed her fear.
Tami's leg was broken -- and the fracture had cut off the circulation to
her foot. She had to be taken to a
hospital right away, but first ...
She knelt by Tami's
side. Looking up into Supergirl's face, Tami stopped crying.
"Supergirl!"
she said weakly. "What -- what -- ?"
"Shhh. Just lie still, okay? Listen, T -- " She'd been about to address Tami by
name, but caught herself in time.
"
-- to me. Your leg is broken. I'm going to take you to the hospital in
Crawfordsville, but I'll have to set it first.
I'm afraid it'll hurt, but just for a moment. Are you ready?"
Tami nodded, biting her
lip and squeezing her eyes shut.
"Okay," said Supergirl.
"Here goes. One -- two -- "
Using her x-ray vision to
guide her, Supergirl pressed against the
fracture. Tami gasped as the broken bone
shifted position. Supergirl
patted her arm.
"That's it," she
said. "You were very brave. What's your name?"
"Tami. Tami Dodge."
"All right, Tami,
you'll be at the hospital soon. I just
need to splint your leg. Lie still,
okay? Don't move."
Supergirl stood up and looked around her. There was nothing she could use as a splint
... unless ...
She strode over to where
the motorcycle lay at the bottom of the bank.
Grasping its frame in her gloved hands, she snapped off a curved length
of steel, then began to straighten it.
"Hey!"
Outraged, Jake was
scrambling to his feet.
"What do you think
you're doing, you crazy chick? That's a
1957 Harley Sportster. It's a classic."
"It was a
classic," Supergirl retorted. "Now it's junk."
Ignoring Jake's protests,
she quickly fashioned two splints from the frame of the Harley and carried them
over to where Tami was lying. Now she
needed something to lash them to Tami's leg ...
She turned to Jake. "Give me your jacket."
"Huh?" Jake stepped back, regarding Supergirl suspiciously.
"What do you want my jacket for?"
Supergirl sighed.
"Your friend has a broken leg," she said patiently. "I need to tie these splints to her leg
and get her to a -- "
"You're going to
slice up my jacket?" Jake sputtered.
"Are you out of your mind?
This is genuine leather. Do you
have any idea how much it cost?"
Supergirl shrugged. "Fine. You can
tell the police that your precious jacket was more important than helping your
friend get medical help."
Jake scowled at her for a
moment, then reluctantly took off his jacket and tossed it at her. "You're paying for that!" he
snarled as he turned to walk away.
Supergirl was kneeling by Tami, slicing strips of leather from
the jacket with her super-hard fingernail and using them to tie the steel tubes
to Tami's lower leg. "Is that a
liquor flask in your hip pocket?" she asked casually.
"I haven't been
drinking!” Jake snapped. “You can smell
my breath if you don’t believe me.”
Supergirl ignored him.
He was probably telling the truth.
Most likely, he’d been planning to bring Tami to some secluded spot, then ply her with liquor and ... A wave of anger swept over her. Let it go, Lana, she told herself as
she finished splinting Tami’s leg.
Carefully, Supergirl lifted Tami off the ground. "Can you put your arms around my
neck?" Nodding though her tears,
Tami obeyed.
Jake sat sulking on the
gravelly slope. “There’s your jacket,” Supergirl said. “I
only used the sleeves. You can wear it
as a vest."
"Aw, take a flying
leap."
"That's just what I
intend to do." Bending her knees,
she prepared to spring into the air.
"You wait here. The police -- "
"What?" Jake leapt to his feet. "You're just going to leave me
here?"
"Don't worry. I'll let the police know where you are. They'll be happy to give you a lift. And I'm sure they'll have a few questions for
you as well."
Stuck-up skirt, thought Jake, watching as Supergirl
flew off with Tami in her arms. Acting
all high-and-mighty and bossing people around just because she's got those
fancy powers. Boy, I'd sure like to take
her down a peg or two ...
Grabbing what remained of
his jacket, he began climbing back up the bank.
Maybe he could hitch a ride into Smallville before
the cops arrived ...
*
* * * * * * *
Suzy maneuvered gracefully
through the crowd of students at the refreshment table. Lana and Julie Davenport were busy filling
paper cups with punch and handing them to their classmates.
"Hey, Lana,"
said Suzy. "How's it going?"
She inclined her head toward the DJ's table, where Lex
was carefully placing the needle on the next record. Bobby Vee's voice
rose above the murmur of conversation as the boys and girls at the punchbowl
wandered off in search of their partners.
Lana rolled her eyes. "Not so well. Lex has hardly said
a word to me all evening."
"Really?" Suzy gave
Lana an appraising glance. "You
look nice. I mean it. That's a cute dress your mom made for you,
and you even trimmed your hair. Tres
chic. So what's his
problem?"
"It's just that we've
both been kept busy. I've been serving
punch all evening, and Lex hasn't been able to get
away from the record player. Turns out
the automatic changer isn't working, so he has to put
on all the records by hand." She
smiled ruefully. "So
much for your perfect plan."
"Don't you
worry," said Suzy. "I'll fix
everything. Just give me a cup of
punch."
"Uh-oh," said
Lana, dipping the ladle into the punchbowl.
"There's that look again.
What are you -- ?" But Suzy had already taken the paper cup from
Lana's hand and hurried over to the DJ's table.
"Hi, Lex," she said brightly, setting down the cup. "Lana thought you might like some
punch."
Lex looked up from the box of 45's he was flipping
through. "Oh -- thanks, Suzy. That was nice of her." He took a sip.
"You're doing a great
job," said Suzy. "It was nice
of you to dedicate the first dance to Tami.
How did you know that 'Runaway' is her favorite song?"
"I asked Pete."
Suzy laughed. "Smart." Then, serious, she said, "Lana says
you've been stuck at this table all evening because the changer doesn't
work."
"Yeah. If I'd known,
I could have brought a turntable from the station."
Suzy shook her head
sympathetically. "That's too
bad. But isn't it almost time for
intermission?"
Lex nodded.
"I figure one more song, then we'll take a
break."
"So why don't you put
on the next song, then get up and stretch your legs -- maybe ask someone to
dance?" She winked. "I'd better find
Blinking, Lex watched her hurry off to join the couples on the dance
floor. "Take Good Care of My
Baby" was almost over. He began
flipping carefully through the 45's in the box until he found the one he'd
borrowed specially from KROW's library.
Well, he thought, glancing nervously across at Lana, in
the words of Elvis Presley -- it's now or never. He placed the record carefully on the
turntable, then set down the tone arm with a slightly shaky hand. There was a short hiss, followed by a few
chords, and then Ricky Nelson's tender baritone poured from the speakers.
"There'll never be anyone else
But you .. for me
..."
Lex stood up, trying to decide what he'd say to
Lana. Lana, may I have the pleasure
of this dance? Too
formal. Lana, would you like to ...
Heart pounding, he stepped
over to the refreshment table. His voice
quavered slightly as he began to speak.
"Uh, Lana ... would you -- "
Just then a surprised
murmur ran through the gymnasium.
Couples stopped dancing; everyone was staring at the entrance. An angry voice rang out.
"You've got one hell
of a nerve showing up here!"
Standing on tiptoe,
craning his neck, Lex saw that Jake Ryder had
strolled into the gymnasium. Pete stood
confronting him, fists clenched, flushed with anger.
Jake scowled at him. "What's your problem, man?"
"My
problem? Tami's in the
hospital because of you! She -- she
could've been killed!" His voice broke.
"Yeah, well, she
wasn't, so just get out of my face."
He shoved Pete aside.
Pete swung wildly. Jake ducked the punch, then
landed a hook on the side of Pete's face.
Pete staggered back, then rushed at Jake like an enraged bull ...
Lana had stepped quietly
into a dark corner of the gymnasium.
Things were getting out of hand.
Maybe she should change to Supergirl ...
But Coach Stevens was
rushing toward the two combatants.
Wrapping his arms around Pete, he pulled him back. "
"All right,"
Coach Stevens announced. "Here's
what gonna happen.
The final chorus was
almost over:
"Never, ever be -- just couldn't be --
Anyone else but you."
As Ricky Nelson hummed
along to the closing chords, Coach Stevens strode up to the DJ's table and
grabbed the microphone.
"All right,
everyone," he boomed. "Show's over.
Let's take a break."
Lex and Lana exchanged glances. "Wow," said Lex. "That was ... unexpected."
"Poor Pete,"
sighed Lana. "He's really broken up
about Tami. Suzy told me they had a
fight just before Tami rode off with Jake." Students were swarming around the refreshment
table, talking excitedly about the scene they'd just witnessed. "I guess I'd better get back to the
table. What was it you were about to say
before we were interrupted?"
"Oh
-- nothing. I'll -- I'll talk to you later,
okay?" He watched glumly as Lana
joined Julie at the punchbowl. Returning
to his own table, he carefully removed the Ricky
Nelson record from the turntable and put it back in its paper sleeve.
ONE HOUR LATER ...
Lana glanced at the
clock. It was a few minutes after
ten. There'd be time for four, maybe
five more dances -- and
the last dance of the evening would be "ladies'
choice." She looked across at the
table where Lex was busy shuffling through his stack
of records, then turned to Julie.
"Uh, Julie?" she
said. "I was wondering -- would you
mind covering the table by yourself during the last dance?"
Julie looked at her in
surprise. "Lana! You're going to ask a guy to dance, aren't
you?" A sly grin spread across her
face as she glanced at the DJ's table.
"And I think I know who."
Lana blushed. "I just feel bad for him, that's
all. I mean, he's been stuck at that
table all evening -- "
"Ha! The lady doth protest too much,
methinks." She laid a reassuring
hand on Lana's arm. "Hey, I'm just
teasing. Sure, I'll cover the
table. Go for it."
Shaking her head, Julie
began gathering up the used paper cups cluttering the table. Lana Lang asking a boy to dance, she
thought. Will wonders never cease?
"Hey,
Lana." Suzy stepped up to the refreshment
table. "So," she said,
lowering her voice conspiratorially.
"Are you ready for the last dance?"
Lana nodded. "I -- I guess."
"I know things
haven't gone the way we planned," Suzy admitted. "But this'll be a slam-dunk. Just go up and ask him to dance."
"What if -- what if
he says no?"
Suzy rolled her eyes. "Don't be silly."
"Where's
"Out
on the bleachers, with Pete. Pete's just sitting there, moping about
Tami. Clark and some of the other guys
are taking turns keeping an eye on him."
She glanced toward the entrance.
"Speak of the devil."
"
-- doesn't want to talk, and he
won't go home,"
"Well, he can't stay
there all night. Ask Larsen or Malloy or
somebody to go out there and keep him company.
As soon as the dance is over I'll see to it he gets home if I have to
drag him myself."
"Right,
Coach."
Poor Pete! thought Lana. He's
taking this even harder than I thought. Narrowing
her eyes, she cast her super-vision beyond the wall of the gymnasium, across
the school grounds and into the bleachers.
Sure enough, there sat Pete in the frosty starlight, his elbows on his
knees and his chin cradled in his hands, a picture of dejection.
Lana sighed. I think I know the cure for what's ailing
him, she thought. Glancing at the
clock, she made a rapid mental calculation.
With luck, she'd be back in time to ask Lex
for the last dance ...
But right now, she was
slipping out a side door, her footsteps echoing along the empty corridor as she
strode toward the girls' locker room,
pulling a red and blue costume from her purse ...
*
* * * * * * *
"Are you Pete
Ross?"
Startled, Pete looked
up. Silhouetted against the starry sky,
a slender figure hovered before him. "Supergirl?"
The figure descended gently. "That's right. And I think I know where you'd rather be
right now. Can I give you a lift into
Crawfordsville?"
Pete nodded,
speechless. Supergirl
removed the cape from her shoulders and held it toward him.
"Better wrap up. It's going to be a chilly ride."
As if in a dream, Pete
drew the cape around his shoulders. The
next moment, Supergirl had lifted him off the ground
and stood cradling him in her arms.
"I'm going to fly up
slowly," she said. "Let me
know if it bothers you, okay?"
"I'll -- I'll be
fine," Pete stammered. In fact, he
was a little afraid of heights, but he wasn't about to admit that to a
girl. Besides, he was going to see Tami ...
Supergirl rose slowly off the ground. Pete gulped.
There was a fluttery feeling in the pit of his stomach. Cautiously, he looked down. They were already high above the school
building. Light from the gymnasium
windows was spilling onto the parking lot.
Smallville lay in darkness below him; trees
and farmhouses were black outlines against the horizon; and Butternut Creek
wound through the starlit landscape like a silver ribbon.
"Wow," Pete said
softly. He'd lived in Smallville all his life, but he'd never seen it like this ...
"I'm going to head
toward Crawfordsville now," Supergirl was
saying. "I'll be flying slowly at
first, then I'll pick up speed. We'll be at the hospital in just a few
minutes. Are you all right?"
Pete grinned. "I'm fine," he said.
The farmland rolled by in
the darkness, slowly at first, then faster and faster. A cold wind blasted against Pete's face and
whistled in his ears. He squeezed his
eyes shut ...
A minute or two later, the
wind began to slacken. Pete opened his
eyes and looked down. The lights of
Crawfordsville lay below.
*
* * * * * * *
The hospital corridor was
quiet and softly lit. At the far end, a
janitor was mopping the lineoleum floor. Mrs. Luthor was
sitting at the nurses' station, filing charts by the light of a gooseneck
lamp. She looked up as footsteps sounded
along the hallway.
"Supergirl!"
she exclaimed.
Supergirl smiled.
"Hello, Mrs. Luthor. This is Pete Ross. He's a friend of Tami's -- the girl I brought
in this afternoon. I know visiting hours
are over, but do you suppose we could see her -- just for a few minutes?"
"Well, if she's not
sleeping, I guess I can bend the rules a little. Her folks left half an hour ago. The poor thing's been feeling awfully blue. Some company might cheer her up." She pointed down the hallway. "Room 208."
"Thank you,"
said Supergirl.
"Yeah, thanks,"
said Pete. "I really appreciate
it." Mrs. Luthor
gave him a wink. Blushing, Pete hurried
after Supergirl.
Supergirl tapped softly on the door of Room 208, then opened
it gently. "Tami?"
Tami was lying on the bed,
staring morosely at the ceiling. Her
right leg, encased in plaster, hung on a sling.
She turned to look at her visitors.
"Supergirl!" she exclaimed, starting
to sit up. Then she noticed Pete and lay
back down, turning her face away.
"I suppose you're
here to say I told you so," she said bitterly.
Pete stepped forward. "No," he said earnestly. "I'm just glad you're okay. Well, not okay," he said, gesturing
toward her cast. "But you know what
I mean."
Tami nodded. Tears were glistening in her large blue
eyes. "Yeah, I would've been killed
if it hadn't been for Supergirl."
"Actually," said
Supergirl, "you can thank Pete for
that."
Tami stared. "Pete?"
Supergirl nodded.
"He was worried when you rode off with Jake. He told Chief Parker, Chief Parker told me,
and I was keeping an eye on you while I was on patrol. That's how I was there to catch you when Jake
lost control of the motorcycle."
Tears were flowing down
Tami's cheeks. "I'm so stupid!"
she said. "Jake was speeding
and he wouldn't let me off when I asked him and I could've been killed and now
I'll be on crutches for a month and I'll probably be grounded for the rest of
my life and he's a jerk and I never want to see him again, ever
-- "
Out of breath, she paused
to wipe the tears from her face with the sleeve of her hospital gown. She sat back and gazed at Pete with wide,
appealing eyes. "Oh, Pete," she
said softly. "Can you forgive
me?"
"Well, yeah,"
Pete stammered. "I mean, you're
okay, and that's all that matters. If --
if anything had happened to you -- " He gulped.
Tami held out her arms,
laughing and crying at the same time.
"Come here, you." As
Pete leaned awkwardly over the bed, Tami threw her arms around his shoulders
and hugged him tight.
Supergirl coughed quietly.
"I've got to get back to my, uh, patrol," she said. "Pete, I'm sure Mrs. Luthor
will be happy to give you a ride home when her shift is over. And I'll ask her to call your folks so they
know where you are."
"Huh?" said
Pete. "Oh -- thanks."
"Yes," said
Tami. "Thanks for -- everything ...
" She was squeezing Pete's hand and
gazing up at him with shining eyes as Supergirl
tiptoed out of the room.
Minutes later, flying back
toward Smallville, Supergirl
heard the wail of a siren. A police car
was speeding along the road below, its red light flashing. She listened in on the car's radio with her
super-hearing.
"
-- armed robbery in
progress at Larry's Liquor Store,
Supergirl thought quickly.
I can be there in a few moments -- and if I can wrap things up fast
enough, I should be able to get back to the school in time for the last dance ...
Putting on a burst of
speed, she left the police car far behind her as she flew toward Shelbyville.
*
* * * * * * *
Supergirl sighed as she gazed down at the school
building. Students were pouring out the
main entrance, and she could see the headlights of cars making their way out of
the parking lot. The dance was
over.
Alighting behind the
building, she changed back into her dress and slipped back inside. She hurried down the quiet corridor and into
the gymnasium. The large room was nearly
empty. A few students were taking down
the decorations and folding the chairs under Mrs. Johanssen's
supervision. Lex
was busy disassembling the equipment on his table and putting it into cartons.
Lana hurried over to the
refreshment table. "There you
are!" said Julie. "I was
afraid you were going to stick me with the clean-up."
Lana grinned
sheepishly. "Sorry," she
said. "Upset stomach. Look, I'll take it from here. You run along."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. I'm feeling
better now. Really."
"Well -- okay. See you Monday."
Poor Lana! thought Julie as she put on her jacket. Upset stomach, my eye. Cold feet is more
like it.
TEN MINUTES LATER ...
Lana surveyed the table.
The cloth was folded, the plates were stacked, and the punchbowl had been
rinsed and dried. She glanced over at
the DJ's table. Lex
was packing away the last piece of equipment.
"How are you getting
home?" she asked. "Isn't your
mother working until midnight?"
"Mr. Hertz wants to
take this stuff back to the station tonight.
He'll drop me off on the way.
What about you?"
"My parents will be
picking me up at eleven." Lana
looked up at the clock. It was
10:40. "Um -- it's kind of warm in
here. Would you -- would you like to go
outside for some fresh air?”
Lex stared at her for a moment, then
nodded. “Sure,” he said. “That -- that would be nice.”
They walked out of the
gym, down the empty corridor, and out into the moonlit parking lot. Only a few cars remained. Shivering slightly, Lex
zipped his jacket. Lana pulled her
cardigan closer around her shoulders as they turned without speaking toward the
football field, silent and empty under the frosty stars. Heart pounding, Lana reached out, brushing
her hand lightly against Lex’s ...
“There’s my little girl!”
boomed a familiar voice behind them.
Lana’s heart sank as she
turned around. Professor Lang stood
beaming at her, arm in arm with Lana's mother.
“Daddy!” she exclaimed,
forcing a smile to her face. “You’re --
early.”
"I've got to be up at
the crack of dawn tomorrow," Professor Lang explained. "I'm taking my graduate students to a
dig in Haverbrook.
So if you're ready -- "
"Well, Lex and I were going to -- I mean, we were talking about --
oh, can't you give us just a couple of minutes?"
Professor Lang started to
speak, but Mrs. Lang gave his arm a sharp squeeze. "Of course we can, dear," she
said. "We'll be waiting in the
car. Come along, Henry."
Professor Lang
shrugged. "Well -- all right. Don't be too long." He turned, then
paused. "By the way, Lex," he said.
"Have I ever told you I'm something of a radio buff myself? I've got a
ham radio set at home. You'll have to
come and take a look at it sometime."
"Really? What do you
have?"
"A Collins
KWM-2," said Professor Lang proudly.
"Wow! Mine is just a Hallicrafters
Sky Champion, but I'm planning to fix up a 75-watt code transmitter. I've got a forty-meter coil and crystal. What kind of antenna do you have?"
"I set up a
fifty-foot tower a few months ago, with a three-element beam ...
"
Lana rolled her eyes. So much for my moonlit stroll, she
thought. Suzy is going to be so
disappointed. As Lex
and her father chatted on about rotors and dipoles, she walked up to her
mother.
"Well," said
Mrs. Lang. "How was the
dance?"
Lana sighed. "It was okay, I guess."
Mrs. Lang put an arm
around her daughter's shoulder.
"Are you all right?"
"I'm fine. I'm just -- I don't know. I was hoping for just one dance with Lex but that didn't happen."
"Disappointed?"
"Yes, but -- I'm kind
of relieved, too. Does that make sense?"
Mrs. Lang nodded. "Oh, yes. Believe it or not, I was your age
once." She lowered her voice. "Mrs. Ross phoned me a little while
ago. She says that Supergirl
brought Pete to the hospital to visit Tami.
That was very nice of her."
"Yeah," said
Lana. "I'm great at helping other
people with their problems, but what about me? I mean -- when will I -- ?"
Mrs. Lang drew her
daughter closer. "Don't worry,
honey. When the time comes, you'll know
it."