When the show Smallville first started in 2001, Lana Lang was a fourteen year old who lost her parents to Smallvilles great meteor shower of 1989. Her Aunt, Nell Potter the owner of a local flower shop, adopted Lana soon after and together they lived in the house next to the Kent’s farm.

While still dating the star-quarterback of Smallville High, Whitney Fordman, Lana decided to drop out of cheerleading to find a better place in the world for herself. She wanted to shed the stereotypical cheerleader persona she no longer felt comfortable with. Still unsure of where she belonged in the world, she was able to find from the boy next door Clark Kent, and the rich son of Lionel Luthor, Lex Luthor. With their help she was able to open her own coffee shop, the Talon.

Though the Talon struggled to stay afloat, Lana's determination kept the shop out of debt and transformed it into the most happening place in Smallville. Meanwhile towards the end of their freshman year, Whitney decides to enlist himself into the Marines and asks Lana to wait for him. By this time she is confused about her feelings for Whitney and realizes they are not as strong as they were when the season first started. Lana is also beginning to realize that her feelings for Clark are developing into something more then just friendship. Lana believes in being honest and would like to voice her feelings, but chooses not to because she knows Whitney is upset over just loosing his father. Being the naturally caring person that she is, she does not wish to bring anymore pain into Whitney’s life. So while she chooses to remain silent when Whitney asks for her to wait for him, sometime later she sends him an emotional tape that delicately calls off their relationship.

In the middle of Season 2, things turn for the worse. Her aunt Nell decides to move from Smallville to the city of Metropolis because of her boyfriend Dean. Lana not wanting to leave her friends and the Talon behind, decides to stay in Smallville regardless of what her aunt wants. Thankfully she was able to do this with the help of her good friend Chloe Sullivan who offers her a place to stay.

Along with having to basically live on her own, her ex-boyfriend is reported missing in action. Broken, Lana starts to realize that all the people she cares for and loves end up leaving her in some way. To top it off the already stressful season for Lana, she discovers that before she was born her mother had an affair. So now, the man whom she always thought was her father was in fact not. Henry Small is her real father, a man still very much alive and living in Smallville. This brings forth and array of mixed emotions and new challenges for Lana to deal with.
As the show progresses, Lana's feelings for

Clark grows, and so does she as a person. To shed the fairy princess costume, as well as take total control of her life, Lana ends up taking martial arts lessons, thanks to the help of Lex. Lana and Clark's relationship finally "blossoms" when Lana surprises Clark with a birthday cake. This touching moment leads to their first kiss. Lana quickly comes to the realization that her feelings for Clark are much deeper than a simple crush; she realizes that she is in love. Their special bond is soon forced apart when Clark’s alien past comes to the forefront causing him to make a devastating decision. Not able to live with the consequences he leaves Smallville and the one true love of his life. For three months Lana was sick with worry as well as heart broken; another person she cared about had left her behind again.

However, not giving up, Lana did all she could to try and find Clark. After months of finding nothing Chloe finally shamefully admits that she had found Clark a couple of months earlier. Lana, furious, wastes no time in going to Clark as she tries her best to bring him back to Smallville and to his parents. Clark, still under the influence of the red kryptonite resists her. Only after a battle ensues between Clark and Jonathon who had received super-strength from Jor-El, is the kryptonite ring destroyed and Clark finally decides to return home. The recent events in Clark’s life change him, and so he comes back to Smallville a different person. Because of this and his love for Lana, he reluctantly pushes her away. Lana, believing in her heart that Clark still loves her, feels that if she "stays in his orbit, he might open up to her." and finally let her into his life. She continues to be there for Clark, as only the truest of friends would; forcing all who observe to admit that the special bond between the two of them is undeniable.