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After dinner, the family moved to the living room. Martha sent Clark upstairs to change into his pajamas. She had a feeling that he was going to end up sleeping on the sofa, and she wanted him to be comfortable. While he was upstairs, she filled Jonathan in on what had happened earlier that night.

"He told me he felt like everything was coming unglued. Those were his words. Before, there was always something or someone for him to lean on. He's always had Pete and Chloe to help him through his Lana problems, or Lana to help him through Pete problems. Lately, he's had Lex to talk to when no one else could help, but now he can't look at Lex without feeling as though he failed him. He said he was glad that Lex knew his secret, and now that's been taken away as well. Pete made some kind of comment about Clark's secret making him worry, Lana truly doesn't wish to see him, and she lives with Chloe, so he feels like she's off-limits to him too. He feels like his secret has made a liar of him, and that upsets him."

Jonathan shook his head sadly. "Not to mention that he was exposed to Kryptonite, beaten up, and electrocuted. Did you see him shaking?"

Martha bit her lip anxiously. "I wish we could take him to a doctor. I don't like it that he's been hurt like that and we can't have him checked out. Most parents would rush their son to the emergency room if he was poisoned, electrocuted, and beaten."

"We're not most parents, and Clark isn't most kids." Jonathan stated.

"I'm okay, Mom. I - I think it'll stop if we just wait."

Clark joined his parents, now wearing comfortable red sweatpants and a blue t-shirt.

"I hope so, sweetie. Here, sit down."

Martha made Clark comfortable on the sofa, again draping the afghan around his shoulders. She knew that his powers protected him against feeling cold, but she knew that the tiny tremors that coursed through her son's body were not a physical chill. Her brow creased in worry at the idea that the exposure to Kryptonite and the electrical voltage might still be affecting him.

Jonathan sat on the sofa with Clark, and Martha settled on the floor in front of them, her left arm resting on Jonathan's knee and her right hand free in case she needed to comfort her son.

"Clark," Jonathan began. "I know you're upset about everything that happened, and I know you're still not back to being yourself after this summer in Metropolis. We can't begin to understand how it feels to have your abilities - " He stopped and chuckled softly. "Well, I guess I can, a little bit, but that was only for a little while. Anyway, what I'm trying to say is that you don't have to be brave or strong or pretend that things are okay when they aren't. Even if you can lift this house off its foundations and toss it around, you're still a teenager. You're our son, we're your parents, and we love you and want to protect you as much as we can. If you make mistakes, which you have and you will, we won't stop loving you. If your mistakes are big enough, you might find yourself with less free time and more chores, or a lack of driving privileges, but we won't stop loving you. Ever." He gave Clark's arm a gentle squeeze. "Even when I don't agree with you, I'm still proud of you."

His father's heartfelt words brought tears to Clark's eyes, but not the earlier tears of sadness, but this time of happiness and gratitude. He had always known that he was lucky to have Jonathan and Martha Kent as his parents, but right now he thought he must have the best parents in the world. Unable to trust his voice yet, Clark just nodded.

Martha smiled, squeezing her son's hand so tightly that if he had not been nearly invincible, it might have hurt. "Clark, baby, you saw some things that nobody your age should have to deal with. Those - those inmates who hurt you - no one, let alone someone as young as you, should have to suffer through being tortured like that. You saw Lex suffering as well, and Pete and Lana were just the icing on the cake. You're emotionally overloaded, and I think that being away from Smallville for a few days might help you get your balance back." She turned to her husband. "Did you get the cabin, Jon?"

He nodded. "How would you like to spend this coming weekend at a lakeside cabin in the woods in the middle of nowhere?"

Clark frowned uncertainly. "With you or by myself?"

"With us, of course. You and I can go fishing, we can take some long hikes, and most importantly, we can get away from everything for a little while. What do you think, Clark? No Lex, Pete, Lana, Kryptonite, or meteor freaks out to hurt you. Just me, you, your mother, and the wilderness."

Some of the shadows that had lurked in Clark's eyes lifted. "Really?"

Jonathan smiled. "Really. A three-day chance for some real relaxation."

In response, Clark let out a sigh of relief. "It sounds great. Better than great, actually." Suddenly, a wave of exhaustion washed over him, and he found that his eyes wanted very much to be closed.

"Clark?" Jonathan watched his son fighting a losing battle with sleep with concern.

"He's just tired, Jon."

Clark slowly opened his eyes. "I'm awake."

"But you should rest, baby. You don't have to go to school tomorrow. You've been through so much ... " Martha frowned as she saw another tremor course though her son's body. "Has that been happening ever since the Kryptonite and the electricity, and if so, why didn't you mention it?"

"I knew there wasn't anything you could do about it. It's not like you can take me to the emergency room. I don't think it's from the - the stuff that happened. I think it's because I can't relax."

"Have you been sleeping?" Martha inquired gently.

He shook his head. "Not much. Bad dreams."

Jonathan and Martha exchanged worried glances, but Martha felt a rush of determination. She sat down on the sofa with her husband and son, placed a pillow in her lap, and encouraged Clark to rest his head on the pillow. She instructed Jonathan to move the teenager's long legs up onto the sofa, and was glad that they had purchased the extra-long sofa five years ago. Their tall son fit, with extra room.

Clark protested feebly. "Mom! I'm too old for this, you don't have to - "

She cut him off. "Of course I don't have to, but I'm your mother and I love you. I want to. When you were little, we used to do this fairly often. You used to have some pretty bad dreams when you were small, but you never remembered them when you woke up. I always thought they must be about your journey here to Earth." She looked up at Jonathan. "Why don't you get some sleep? I'll stay down here with Clark tonight."

Jonathan shook his head. "Nope. I'm camping right here in this chair." He pointed to the recliner. "I want to be here for him as much as you do. If you need to get up, I'll take over."

Even in his half-asleep state, Clark smiled. His parents were actually squabbling over who got to stay up with him. Even though all of the emotional distress, he was sure that he had never felt more loved.

That night, Clark drifted off to sleep with his mother rubbing his back soothingly, chasing the tremors away with the sheer force of her love, while his father snored softly from the recliner.