[ 76 ] Closed Doors

[techbilt]

Theme Prompt: [076] Closed Doors
Title: Closed Doors
Fandom: Legion of SuperHeroes (Comics and Cartoon)
Rating/Warnings: PG
Bonus: No
Word Count: 489
Summary: Clark takes a trip to the future to find he's closed a door he can't open.

There were a lot of things about the future that surprised Clark - doors moving as he got close to them wasn’t one of them. The technology had been there for years before Clark had crash-landed on earth and was adopted by two Smallville farmers. What did surprise him though was this particular door - the door that had always opened for him no matter what was closed.

It had been a while since he had set foot in the Legion headquarters - He’d promised Brainy he wouldn’t come back. He needed to be in his time and Brainy needed to stay here in the future they had separated on good terms, amicable. History said his one true love was someone else, Brainy would never say - and maybe History was right, but Clark didn’t think so. It had been years since he was a high schooler, only just coming into his own as a Superhero, helping them take down the fatal 5 and slowly Brainy and Clark becoming closer and closer, much closer than he had felt for Lex or Lana.

He knocks on the door and still nothing. Clark hardly remembers a time when this door wouldn’t open for him. Maybe he just needs to accept that things are different now, Brainys moved on and Clark should accept that. Clark rests his head against the lab's large led doors, he can’t x-ray through them and he can’t hear anything other than computing on the other side. But that doesn’t mean much - It’s hard to differentiate Brainy’s Hardware from COMPUTOs a lot of days.

“Hey Supes, what's with the long face?” asks a member. It takes Clark a second to realize who it is.

“Garth?” he asks. The man had grown, Beard, muscle, he had it all. The weirdest development since he had left was the twins attached to each hand. Times had really changed. “Wow. I- uh- you know where Brainy is?”

“Left with Lyle for some Science thing for the weekend. Why? What are you doing here?”

“I- nothing, never mind. I was just hoping to see him again, catch up, been a while you know?” Garth only nods and Clark can’t tell if he’s bought it or not. “I just - I’ll go home. Got chores to do you know? Ma’s getting older and with Pa gone now it's just me to help her out, so I’ll get out of here -”

“I’ll let him know you stopped by, He’ll be glad to hear from you.”

“No-no that’s fine,” says Clark. He backs up and floats away. Defeated in ways that Brainiac or Luthor could never accomplish. Brainy really had moved on - and Clark should have fought harder to keep him close. Should have worked something out. Anything. But it was too late now. Clark would have to go on and live his life, one he’s already lived according to the history books here.