Title: A Very Trifling Sundae
Author: Kirsten Sea
Email: kirsten_sea2000@yahoo.co.uk
Website: http://www.geocities.com/kirsten_sea2000/
Pairing: Lex/Lana
Rating: PG
Archive: No, no, it hasn't been beta'd!
Disclaimer: Not mine


===
A Very Trifling Sundae
===


Lana thought ice cream had truly magical powers. It came in an 
amazing variety of flavours, and was creamy and soft and sticky and 
sexy. It was deliciously cold on long, hot summer evenings, and made 
even the dreariest days seem a little more lovely. It had to be 
magic, because she'd never seen Lex Luthor smile quite like that 
before.

"What's this one called again?"

"Mississippi Mud Slide."

He frowned. "Isn't that a pie? I'm sure I had Mississippi Mud Pie 
somewhere."

"I never said it was original."

"Well, when it tastes like this it doesn't have to be," he said, and 
Lana laughed as he sucked an even larger spoonful of triple chocolate 
ice cream covered in hot chocolate fudge sauce into his mouth.

It was a Sunday evening, after hours in the Talon. The staff were 
gone, the doors were locked, and the lights were very low. It was 
quiet and peaceful, the last of the spring rains pattering down onto 
the sidewalk outside. The top was down on Lex's car, but when she'd 
mentioned it he hadn't seemed to care. And why should he, when he had 
six more cars just like it?

They were busy choosing the summer menu. Ice cream, ice cream, and 
more ice cream, along with the usual fruit pies and various muffins. 
Lex had insisted on precision, executing the experiment with all the 
discipline of a scientist. The possibilities were lined up neatly in 
the refrigerator, ready and waiting to be subjected to the Lang-
Luthor tastebud test.

So far, they'd tested Berry Your Appetite (vanilla ice cream with 
strawberry, raspberry, and many other berries thereof); Cool It, Baby 
(mint ice cream with milk and white chocolate chips and a sweet mint 
sauce); and Looking For Nuts? (peanut ice cream with chopped 
hazelnuts and almonds, bulked up with a caramel swirl and chunks of 
heavy toffee).

The last had been Lex's idea. He'd put the order in for peanut ice 
cream when she hadn't been looking, and strolled in the next day with 
his concoction neatly typed out on plain white paper, complete with a 
list of ingredients measured to point zero zero one of a gram, and 
what he'd called "blending times" detailed to the very last 
milisecond.

She'd looked at it, and said: "Aren't you taking this a little too 
seriously?"

He'd looked at her, and replied: "Ice cream is a serious business, 
Lana. It's just like chemistry."

And apparently it really was, at least as far as Lex was concerned. 
Lana had been happy to simply throw sweet things in a bowl and leave 
it at that, but Lex had declared that ice cream production needed a 
method. "The layers have to be right," he'd said, so earnestly Lana 
had forced back a laugh.

"What?" he demanded.

"You're an ice cream whore," Lana replied, absolutely delighted to 
learn something so quirky about Lex Luthor, and pleasantly astonished 
by her own boldness.

Lex smiled again. "My mother liked ice cream. She used to make her 
own," he explained, ruefully adding, "I guess it's in the genes."

Lana found it hard to imagine anyone with a greater passion for ice 
cream than Lex Luthor. She'd taken one or two spoonfuls of each dish: 
Lex had eaten them all. There was around half a litre to each one, 
and now he was tucking into a veritable landslide of chocolate ice 
cream with all the relish of a starving man at a king's feast. She 
stared at him, amazed.

He caught her look and raised his eyebrows. Lana felt compelled to 
tease.

"Do you ever eat up at that castle?"

"Of course," he snapped, but his eyes were laughing, and his 
expression was slightly sheepish. "I just -- really like ice cream."

"I never would have guessed. Wow. I feel ill just looking at you."

Lex chuckled, the sound loud in the dim light. "Why, thank you, Lana 
Lang, for that most cutting of compliments."

"You know what I mean," she said, laughing with him. She picked up 
her spoon and stole some of his ice cream. It really was delicious.

"It isn't food, you know," Lex said, with the kind of Luthor logic 
Lana could never quite figure out. "I mean, you can eat ice cream 
even when you've had a three course meal."

"Maybe guys can, but it really sticks to a girl's hips."

And just like that, the atmosphere changed. Lex leaned over the 
counter and blatantly looked her up and down, his eyes still smiling 
but tinged with that thing she often saw when guys looked at her as 
she walked down the street.

His head was close to her shoulder. He smelled clean and crisp, and 
he looked so *smooth* that just for a moment Lana wondered what it 
would be like to touch him, or kiss him, or --

He straightened up, but didn't pull away. His breath was warm and 
sweet like the cold chocolate he'd been eating, and Lana had never 
noticed before just how very blue his eyes were, how smart and bright 
he really was. 

"You look okay to me," he said, and his voice was very husky.

Lana stepped away and looked down at her shoes, beat up old sneakers 
she'd had for a couple of years. They weren't proper attire for the 
assistant manager, but they were comfortable, and comfort was the 
most important thing to consider after a morning spent cleaning the 
stables and a day spent serving customers.

Lex leaned back. "The ice cream menu is a really great idea, Lana."

She smiled. The truth was, Lex had commented last week that he never 
really felt like eating apple pie when the weather was hot. It had 
been an off-hand remark, tossed out casually to Clark one night after 
school. She'd been wiping tables nearby, trying not to eavesdrop, but 
Lex had taught her a few things about running a business and taking 
any and every advantage presented, and Lana was nothing if not a 
dutiful student. She'd checked out the local ice cream suppliers the 
very next day.

"Thank you," she said, opting to take the credit regardless. She 
determinedly ignored the knowing in his eyes.

It was very dark outside. Lana thought it was probably time to leave, 
and pointed at Lex's bowl. "Are you done?"

He stood and stretched. Lana watched his body tense and then relax, 
and sighed. "Oh, I think so. Consider this a successful experiment, 
Miss Lang, although we should possibly repeat it. Empirical evidence, 
you know?"

"Uh huh. And of course, it has nothing to do with the fact you're an 
ice cream whore."

Lex grinned, and that thing flashed in his eyes again, dark and 
wicked and amused. "You can do amazing things with ice cream, Lana. 
All it takes is a little imagination."

His amusement made that thing easier for her to stand, and she 
grinned right back at him. "Whatever you say, Lex. How about next 
Sunday? Same time, same place?"

He picked up his car keys and smirked. "It's a date."

Lana watched him leave with a smile on her face, before fixing her 
gaze on the four bowls they'd emptied between them. She decided to 
dump them in the washer and leave them until morning.

She shrugged into her coat and turned out the lights, leaving the 
Talon in darkness. It was still damp outside, although it had stopped 
raining, and Lana was glad Lex had left her to walk home. She liked 
the smell of rain, of damp grass and spring flowers. For some reason, 
it reminded her of her parents.

Lex's Porsche was still parked outside by the time she locked the 
door, the passenger window open. It framed his face, and she 
reflected that he really did make a charming picture when he smiled, 
especially with that thing still in his eyes.

"You need a ride, Miss Lang?"

Lana laughed and shook her head, bending down to look at him more 
closely. His breath was still warm and sweet, and his eyebrows were 
tilted in such a way as to make him look hopeful. "Well, I don't 
know, Mr Luthor. What kind of ride are you offering?"

He ducked his head, almost shy. "Tonight? The regular kind. But maybe 
later . . ."

"A long time later," she said, and smiled to take the sting out of it.

He shrugged. "I'm not going anywhere. You sure you don't want a ride 
home?"

"I think I'll be safer walking alone in the dark."

"Funny girl," he shot back, teasing with his eyes. Lana watched him 
drive away with a smile on her face.

There would be another Sunday.


=end=


Tuesday 10th September 2002