To Be Loved

So in the Christmas episode in Smallville, Lex gets shot and sees what his future would be like if he gives up his Luther empire. He sees that he is married to Lana, the girl he has always secretly loved (but she in real life hates him) and he has the admiration of all of Smallville and the friends he's always wanted (including Clark). So of course he is very happy and then Lana dies in childbirth. Because Lex has given up all his money he can't get her to the best hospital to save her life and his dad who has disowned him refuses to help. So he watches helplessly as Lana dies.
He then wakes up from being shot and decides from that time forward to not give up his Luther empire. He wants power and money so that he will never be helpless again. So this is the turning point in his life where he went down the opposite road of "happiness." And we all know that Lex turns out "evil."
The thing is though, that Lex just wanted to be happy but when he was happy he lost Lana, the one thing that mattered. Did he turn evil because he is evil or because he didn't want Lana to die in the alternate life? He choose to be hated instead by everyone just so that he could secure and protect those that matter most to him...he sacrificed his own happy future to save Lana from dying and choosing an alternate, and darker route.
This was a very sad episode. Poor Lex. All he wants is to be loved and that is the one thing he can't have.