Clark strode into the glass and chrome office without even looking at the assistant guarding the inner sanctum. She knew better than to get between him and Lex; had heard enough of the volume to their arguments, if not the actually the words, to stay well clear. He stopped in front of the desk and crossed his arms over his chest, glaring at Lex.

For his part, Lex leaned back in his chair and gazed back, inscrutible. His eyes were cool pools of blue that were utterly unreadable, as they always were. He'd become more like his father over the years than he ever wanted to admit and it bothered them both. "Yes, Clark? What can I do for you?"

"I know you did it!" Clark hissed furiously. Even when he was calm, what he felt showed on his face. When he was this upset, there was no way for him to hide anything. "I know you fucking did it, Luthor!"

Lex actually flinched before regaining his composure. "That's the first time you've called me that. Perhaps I should mark the date."

Leaning on the desk, almost looming over the other man, Clark snapped, "Don't play games with me! Why? Why did you do it?"

"Clark, I don't know what you're talking about."

"Liar!"

"That's rich coming from you."

Clark took a breath, reining in his temper before he lost complete control. "What did you think you would accomplish?"

Keeping that infuriatingly calm mask in place, Lex commented, "I still don't know what you're talking about."

"The tanker! You sank the God damned tanker! There were over a hundred people on board and Superman couldn't get to them in time!" Clark shouted. "What is wrong with you? Is human life worth so little?"

"What's worth more, Clark? The fact that the tanker was going to supply a rebel faction in a tiny unknown country and cause countless deaths and misery, or those hundred lives?" Lex countered intently.

"And the fact that you're now in position to swoop in and reap the profits from supplying its neighbors had no bearing on anything."

"An unexpected benefit in a bad situation. A situation, I'll reiterate, that I did not create."

Clark looked at his lover as though seeing him for the very first time. He noted the elegant clothing, the strong, supple body, the charismatic features and almost hypnotic voice and eyes. They'd grown together and apart over the years, their lives diverging and converging at various times. Always, though, there had been the spark of friendship, the spark of caring in Lex's eyes.

It was gone now and Clark's heart slipped the rest of the way down the slope that Lex had pushed it towards.

Straightening, Clark eyed him a moment longer then stated simply, "Goodbye, Lex."

He made it to the door before Lex called his name. Turning back, he saw a brief yearning in the blue eyes and made a step towards the other man. It was gone before he could rekindle anything, though, and he stopped in place.

"Goodbye, Clark."

They stared at one another for a few more seconds, weighing and measuring strengths and weaknesses, determination. They were locked into fate now...lovers made the most bitter of enemies, after all, and they would be no different. Too many secrets between them, too many lies from which to recover.

Clark nodded slowly and left, thinking how he could protect the world even as Lex returned to typing on his laptop, working on his own plans for how to rule it.