Pieces

Pursuit

A/N: I don't own Smallville or any characters and places in the DC universe. Nor do I own the episodes that these chapters are based and contained from.

I also don't claim to be a writer. My inspiration is simply to get a creative outlet going.

I only own Tyla Nevin and what pertains to her character story.

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A groan strained from Lex's throat. His eyes fluttered awake and he found himself staring at a bland ceiling with sounds of a heart monitor beeping to his left and distant chatter to his right. He moved, feeling a bit stiff. He raised his left arm and felt the pull of an IV. Swallowing hard and only meeting dry mouth, he turned to his right to see Tyla Nevin lying serenely asleep. He pressed his lips together. She was sitting at her chair. Her upper body was sprawled over on the hospital bed where his thighs were. She had tucked her arms underneath her head as a pillow. Her hair was up in a messy bun and she wore casual clothes, a pair of sweatpants and a tank. This was a different side of her entirely that he almost didn't recognize her. It was a far cry from the dress that she had on when he last saw her. Lex looked around, confirming that he truly was at the hospital and not in some set up in the manor. He shifted a bit more, trying to see if he could sit up from the bed, but a light moan echoed in his ears. He looked back down and saw Tyla stirring.

"Lex?" She squinted at him as she slowly woke up. "Oh...you're awake!" She got up, trying to make sure that she was a little more presentable. Tyla spent entire days at the hospital, waiting for Lex to wake up. It would have been extremely difficult to admit Lex Luthor when his only next of kin was behind bars. However, being his personal assistant has its perks. She knew his social security and insurance or any bit of information they felt like testing her with.

"Where am I?" he rasped . His throat was hoarse and dry.

"Metropolis General," she replied, looking around to see if there may have been a pitcher of water left nearby. "You were choking. The doctor said that you ingested some chemicals and-well, they had to drain it at Smallville Medical before I had you airlifted here."

"You've been here this whole time." It wasn't a question. He was now awake enough to gauge the room deeper. It was a private room. Large windows spanned to his left to overlook the skyline and another large window to his right displayed the hospital's hallway. He spotted a couple of bodyguards standing near the entrance. There was a private bathroom and a large TV hung across from them. Near the left windows, a high table perched with papers and files that were scattered haphazardly. Her laptop was on the side table next to the two of them. She seemed to have been working while she waited. "How long have I been here?"

"You were in Smallville for a couple of days before you came here," she started to say. "It's been a month. Even though most of it was flushed out of your system, you fell into a coma."

He could have passed out again if he didn't dare to go back to sleep. "You've managed LuthorCorp for an entire month?!" Lex exclaimed. Without Lionel Luthor, she would be the only one remotely close to his clearance level to handle the projects. He might need to give her a raise if the company didn't go belly up.

"I was hoping you would wake up sooner," she murmured as she looked down. That evening, Lex had come in and out of consciousness until they removed all the toxic chemicals. He was either panting in pain or screaming. It was almost welcoming that he slipped into a coma after the shock however, there was no guarantee that he would wake up from it. She felt tears well up in her eyes.

He reached for her hand and halted from the stiffness. "I'm not going anywhere," he said, although it sounded more like a whisper. His stomach gave a flip as she gave him a tired smile, extending her arm to take his hand before a doctor walked in.