Chlark Fanfic: Right in Front of You, Ch 2
Rating: PG (for now!) ;-)
Timescale: Sometime after Fierce
Disclaimer: All characters belong to the CW & DC Comics
Read previous chapter here.
Chapter 2
Clark trudged along for several minutes, not really thinking about where he was going. He contemplated switching to superspeed and going for a run, but realised he kind of felt like taking things slow for once. Besides, he was a little confused as to why he didn’t feel as much grief over the break-up with Lana as he expected to feel. Hell, for some reason he didn’t feel any grief at all. Given that he’d spent his entire adult life (and a considerable portion of his childhood years) dreaming about how wonderful life would be if he got to spend it with Lana, he expected he’d feel at least a little disappointed that things hadn’t work out. In fact he seemed oddly relieved, as if he’d dispensed with a burden he hadn’t realised he’d been carting around; somewhat lighter and less weighed down mentally & physically. Probably a delayed reaction, he mused. He’d probably fall apart later and retreat into full mope mode.
He stopped in his tracks, coming to a sudden realisation. Funny how he hadn’t retreated to the barn like he had all the other times he’d broken up with Lana. Wow, he must really be growing up.
He smiled to himself, and picked up pace a little as he rounded a corner and found himself on Smallville’s Main Street. It wasn’t very late, but even so the streets were pretty much deserted. Automatically his eyes went to the Talon upstairs window, where his best friend Chloe Sullivan shared an apartment with her cousin Lois. The flat seemed to be in darkness; they were either out on the town or probably already asleep…maybe getting an early night, he thought. He’d seen Chloe’s car parked on the street, so he knew she must be in, though it was out of character for her to be in bed before midnight. Perhaps she’d skimped on her regular daily coffee intake and crashed out on the couch, he thought with a smile. He was a little disappointed though; truth be told, he’d subconsciously walked in this direction hoping she’d be wide awake and up for a chat. Though he wasn’t upset, his spirits could do with a boost, and there was nothing that lifted his mood like the sound of Chloe’s laughter, or the sharp retort of some snarky comment of hers.
He thought briefly of disturbing her. He knew she wouldn’t mind, really. But the thought of incurring Lois’ wrath made him think better of it. He started to slow his pace and prepare to head in a different direction when a movement in the shadows further down the road caught his eye. A small figure had emerged out of the Talon entrance and was making its way up the lonely road in his direction.
Chloe.
He smiled. Perfect timing, he thought. Though still some distance away, he knew it was her. His acute sense of smell had caught the scent that was distinctly Chloe; a mix of white musk, with a hint of moonflower and passion fruit…probably a mix of her shampoo and perfume, he thought. It was the perfect scent for her; mellow and gently sensual but with a sharp edge. Yup, that was Chloe through and through.
The fact that she was out alone at this time meant she wasn’t spending the evening with Jimmy as he’d thought she’d be. At the thought of Jimmy his brows creased in a sudden frown. He knew they’d been dating for a while now, but he hadn’t quite gotten used to the fact that Chloe had a man in her life that wasn’t him. Granted, he had no right to feel that way because he wasn’t Chloe’s boyfriend, and he’d had a girlfriend of his own. But he’d come to expect Chloe to always be there when he needed her, and her having a boyfriend…well, that kind of made things awkward for him because it put Jimmy in the driver’s seat and him in the back, as it were. It sucked knowing he wasn’t her number one man.
He gave himself a mental shake. Back to earth, buddy - she can date who she wants when she wants, he told himself wryly. She’s not your girlfriend, after all. Never has been.
Which, he suddenly realised, was a damn shame.
He stood watching her approach, waiting for her to acknowledge his presence.
***
Chloe stepped out of the Talon coffee shop entrance and began briskly making her way down the street. Thought it wasn’t a late night, she had no idea how long she’d be out and thought she should perhaps return to the apartment and pick up her taser or at least her trusty can of mace if she were going to be wandering the streets late at night. But hey, this was her neighbourhood, and she was not going to be intimidated into living in fear in her own front yard, so to speak.
It was a fairly warm night but with a bit of a breeze, so she pulled her jacket on as she walked along.
She was halfway down the street when she saw the figure lurking some distance away in the shadows. A quick analysis told her she was too far from the Talon to run back in and barricade the doors if he decided to give chase, so she made an effort to keep on going with a confident walk. She glanced up and studied the figure in the distance surreptitiously. It was definitely male, and a large one at that. If he decided to attack her, she didn’t have a chance. And he didn’t seem to be the type who would let her talk her way out of a sticky situation.
Unbelievable, she thought grimly. This on the one night I decided to leave my friendly can of mace sitting in a drawer.
Just as she’d started going over every martial arts movie in her head to see if she could pilfer any moves, the figure began to walk forward and stepped under the light of the streetlamp.
She didn’t need to squint to see who it was.
Clark.
She heaved a sigh of relief. What was he doing out on Main Street at this time of night? Well, at least she wasn’t going to be ravished by a beefy stranger. So the mace and taser could continue enjoying their happy night in the drawer.
She walked forward as he continued to approach her. He looks pensive, she thought. Something must be up at the farm for him to leave Lana there at this time of night and go walking solo. She wondered if he’d been coming to seek her out for a Lana-centric chat. She sighed. Yeah, that’s me, she thought grimly. The go-to girl, ever ready to dish out advice on a love life I’d really rather not talk about.
She walked toward him and he toward her until they both stood right in front of each other under a streetlight. To her surprise he had a slight smile on his face. Hmm. Not the expression he usually wore when there’s trouble in paradise. She was intrigued, to say the least.
“Hey,” Clark said.
“Hey yourself,” Chloe countered.
They stood smiling at each other for a short while. Then Clark wordlessly held out his right hand in silent invitation: walk with me.
She looked down at his large hand, and placed her small one in his and grinned up at him in silent answer: lead the way.
***
They walked along in companionable silence for a long while. Finally Clark spoke.
“Lana & I broke up,” he said.
Ten points to me on calling that one, Chloe thought to herself. Wonder how long this break up will last.
Aloud, she said “Jimmy and I called it quits.”
About fricking time, Clark thought peevishly. Out loud however, he said, “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be,” Chloe replied easily. “We weren’t going anywhere, and it wasn’t fair of me to keep him hanging on.”
For the first time in the evening, Clark felt genuinely pleased. From the moment she’d mentioned their break-up, he’d wanted to punch the air and shout “YES!!!”, but he figured she wouldn’t quite appreciate that response. Not that he hated Jimmy or anything. He just wanted Chloe to be happy, and if Jimmy wasn’t making her happy…
“Lana and I decided we really didn’t have that much to go on, either,” Clark said.
Well duh, Chloe thought snarkily. I could have told you that years ago, doofus.
Instead, she said “It’s hard when you realise you never really knew someone as well as you thought you did, isn’t it?”
Clark pondered that one briefly as they strolled along. “Maybe we did know them, Chloe. Maybe we all changed along the way. I mean, a lot has happened since we were all kids in Eighth Grade.”
“And both Jimmy and I have grown up a lot since we were young Daily Planet interns all those years back.” Chloe sighed. “You’re right, Clark. People change. Situations change. And you realise you don’t really want what you thought you wanted.”
“Or maybe like you said, we never actually read the situation right in the first place.” Clark let go of her hand and placed an arm around her shoulder. “No one said growing up was gonna be easy.”
Chloe slipped an arm around his waist and nestled closer to him, resting her head against the side of his shoulder as they walked along. “Well, it would have been nice to have had some warning, or some pointers along the way. ‘Heartbreak at the next turn ahead’, that sort of thing.”
Clark chuckled. “Well, at least we can learn from our mistakes and move on.” He gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. “You sure you’re okay?”
“Yeah…kind of relieved, actually.” Chloe glanced up at him. “How about you? You’re usually an inconsolable mess for weeks after a Lana break-up. I’d have pegged you for a full-scale barn-mope-a-thon right about now.”
“’Full-scale barn-mope-a-thon’. Only you could come up with that,” Clark laughed. “On the contrary, Chloe. I think I’ve finally kicked that habit.”
“Whoo-hoo, break out the champagne!” Chloe chuckled. “Where’s Lana now?”
“Moving out of the farm as we speak. She said to apologise to you for…something.”
Chloe frowned. “Apologise to me? For what? Didn’t she say?”
Clark shook his head. “She said you’d know what for, or that you’d find out, or something along those lines. It was all very cryptic. I guess she’ll leave some clue as to what it’s all about, though.”
“Hmm. Weird.”
They ambled on till they got to the ‘WELCOME TO SMALLVILLE!’ sign.
They stopped and looked at each other.
“City limits,” Chloe said.
“Yeah.” Clark looked at the sign for a moment.
“You wanna head back?” Chloe offered reluctantly.
Good God, no. Clark was enjoying this night walk more than he’d enjoyed anything recently. Chloe had a way of making him relax and just be himself. Besides, he had no desire to return to the farm and watch Lana finish packing. He’d said his goodbyes to Lana, and that was that.
And that was why he felt so free, he suddenly he realised. The entire relationship with Lana had been a dead albatross around his neck that he’d been dragging around, the last vestiges of a childhood crush that had died long ago but that he’d refused to bury. By the time he and Lana finally got together, the foundation was already shot.
There’d been nothing to save.
But Clark being Clark, he’d tried to hold on, to do the right thing by Lana. He’d put her through so much already, he felt it would destroy her completely or send her over the edge if she knew the truth about how he felt.
Or that she would be so hell-bent on revenge that she would reveal to the world - or to Lex, his arch enemy - the truth about him, that he was really a super-powered alien. And Lex Luthor had been known to be less than kind to those who were…different.
No, Clark definitely did not want to head back to the farm just yet.
But he did want to spend the rest of the evening with the perky blonde by his side.
And he knew exactly how to make the evening perfect for both of them.
“Clark?” Chloe wiggled her fingers in front of his face. “Hello? Where did you go? I asked if you wanted to head back.”
Clark turned to her, big grin on his face.
“How’d you like to go for a run?”
Chloe blinked. “A run?”
“A run.”
“With you?”
“With me.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Clark, I like jogging as much as the next person, but even in my Air Jordans and on a lifetime supply of Red Bull and coffee, there is absolutely no way I could keep up with you on a run, believe me!”
Clark smiled. “Oh, Chloe,” he admonished, and in one swift movement swept her off her feet and into his arms. “I meant like this.”
“Aaah. Now this is how to travel.” She grinned back as she linked her fingers behind his neck. “So where are we going?”
He grinned, that wide open smile that never failed to turn her heart to mush.
“You’ll see.”
And in one swift moment, he sped off down the road, a red and blue blur in the night.
***
Read Chapter 3 here...
Timescale: Sometime after Fierce
Disclaimer: All characters belong to the CW & DC Comics
Read previous chapter here.
Chapter 2
Clark trudged along for several minutes, not really thinking about where he was going. He contemplated switching to superspeed and going for a run, but realised he kind of felt like taking things slow for once. Besides, he was a little confused as to why he didn’t feel as much grief over the break-up with Lana as he expected to feel. Hell, for some reason he didn’t feel any grief at all. Given that he’d spent his entire adult life (and a considerable portion of his childhood years) dreaming about how wonderful life would be if he got to spend it with Lana, he expected he’d feel at least a little disappointed that things hadn’t work out. In fact he seemed oddly relieved, as if he’d dispensed with a burden he hadn’t realised he’d been carting around; somewhat lighter and less weighed down mentally & physically. Probably a delayed reaction, he mused. He’d probably fall apart later and retreat into full mope mode.
He stopped in his tracks, coming to a sudden realisation. Funny how he hadn’t retreated to the barn like he had all the other times he’d broken up with Lana. Wow, he must really be growing up.
He smiled to himself, and picked up pace a little as he rounded a corner and found himself on Smallville’s Main Street. It wasn’t very late, but even so the streets were pretty much deserted. Automatically his eyes went to the Talon upstairs window, where his best friend Chloe Sullivan shared an apartment with her cousin Lois. The flat seemed to be in darkness; they were either out on the town or probably already asleep…maybe getting an early night, he thought. He’d seen Chloe’s car parked on the street, so he knew she must be in, though it was out of character for her to be in bed before midnight. Perhaps she’d skimped on her regular daily coffee intake and crashed out on the couch, he thought with a smile. He was a little disappointed though; truth be told, he’d subconsciously walked in this direction hoping she’d be wide awake and up for a chat. Though he wasn’t upset, his spirits could do with a boost, and there was nothing that lifted his mood like the sound of Chloe’s laughter, or the sharp retort of some snarky comment of hers.
He thought briefly of disturbing her. He knew she wouldn’t mind, really. But the thought of incurring Lois’ wrath made him think better of it. He started to slow his pace and prepare to head in a different direction when a movement in the shadows further down the road caught his eye. A small figure had emerged out of the Talon entrance and was making its way up the lonely road in his direction.
Chloe.
He smiled. Perfect timing, he thought. Though still some distance away, he knew it was her. His acute sense of smell had caught the scent that was distinctly Chloe; a mix of white musk, with a hint of moonflower and passion fruit…probably a mix of her shampoo and perfume, he thought. It was the perfect scent for her; mellow and gently sensual but with a sharp edge. Yup, that was Chloe through and through.
The fact that she was out alone at this time meant she wasn’t spending the evening with Jimmy as he’d thought she’d be. At the thought of Jimmy his brows creased in a sudden frown. He knew they’d been dating for a while now, but he hadn’t quite gotten used to the fact that Chloe had a man in her life that wasn’t him. Granted, he had no right to feel that way because he wasn’t Chloe’s boyfriend, and he’d had a girlfriend of his own. But he’d come to expect Chloe to always be there when he needed her, and her having a boyfriend…well, that kind of made things awkward for him because it put Jimmy in the driver’s seat and him in the back, as it were. It sucked knowing he wasn’t her number one man.
He gave himself a mental shake. Back to earth, buddy - she can date who she wants when she wants, he told himself wryly. She’s not your girlfriend, after all. Never has been.
Which, he suddenly realised, was a damn shame.
He stood watching her approach, waiting for her to acknowledge his presence.
***
Chloe stepped out of the Talon coffee shop entrance and began briskly making her way down the street. Thought it wasn’t a late night, she had no idea how long she’d be out and thought she should perhaps return to the apartment and pick up her taser or at least her trusty can of mace if she were going to be wandering the streets late at night. But hey, this was her neighbourhood, and she was not going to be intimidated into living in fear in her own front yard, so to speak.
It was a fairly warm night but with a bit of a breeze, so she pulled her jacket on as she walked along.
She was halfway down the street when she saw the figure lurking some distance away in the shadows. A quick analysis told her she was too far from the Talon to run back in and barricade the doors if he decided to give chase, so she made an effort to keep on going with a confident walk. She glanced up and studied the figure in the distance surreptitiously. It was definitely male, and a large one at that. If he decided to attack her, she didn’t have a chance. And he didn’t seem to be the type who would let her talk her way out of a sticky situation.
Unbelievable, she thought grimly. This on the one night I decided to leave my friendly can of mace sitting in a drawer.
Just as she’d started going over every martial arts movie in her head to see if she could pilfer any moves, the figure began to walk forward and stepped under the light of the streetlamp.
She didn’t need to squint to see who it was.
Clark.
She heaved a sigh of relief. What was he doing out on Main Street at this time of night? Well, at least she wasn’t going to be ravished by a beefy stranger. So the mace and taser could continue enjoying their happy night in the drawer.
She walked forward as he continued to approach her. He looks pensive, she thought. Something must be up at the farm for him to leave Lana there at this time of night and go walking solo. She wondered if he’d been coming to seek her out for a Lana-centric chat. She sighed. Yeah, that’s me, she thought grimly. The go-to girl, ever ready to dish out advice on a love life I’d really rather not talk about.
She walked toward him and he toward her until they both stood right in front of each other under a streetlight. To her surprise he had a slight smile on his face. Hmm. Not the expression he usually wore when there’s trouble in paradise. She was intrigued, to say the least.
“Hey,” Clark said.
“Hey yourself,” Chloe countered.
They stood smiling at each other for a short while. Then Clark wordlessly held out his right hand in silent invitation: walk with me.
She looked down at his large hand, and placed her small one in his and grinned up at him in silent answer: lead the way.
***
They walked along in companionable silence for a long while. Finally Clark spoke.
“Lana & I broke up,” he said.
Ten points to me on calling that one, Chloe thought to herself. Wonder how long this break up will last.
Aloud, she said “Jimmy and I called it quits.”
About fricking time, Clark thought peevishly. Out loud however, he said, “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be,” Chloe replied easily. “We weren’t going anywhere, and it wasn’t fair of me to keep him hanging on.”
For the first time in the evening, Clark felt genuinely pleased. From the moment she’d mentioned their break-up, he’d wanted to punch the air and shout “YES!!!”, but he figured she wouldn’t quite appreciate that response. Not that he hated Jimmy or anything. He just wanted Chloe to be happy, and if Jimmy wasn’t making her happy…
“Lana and I decided we really didn’t have that much to go on, either,” Clark said.
Well duh, Chloe thought snarkily. I could have told you that years ago, doofus.
Instead, she said “It’s hard when you realise you never really knew someone as well as you thought you did, isn’t it?”
Clark pondered that one briefly as they strolled along. “Maybe we did know them, Chloe. Maybe we all changed along the way. I mean, a lot has happened since we were all kids in Eighth Grade.”
“And both Jimmy and I have grown up a lot since we were young Daily Planet interns all those years back.” Chloe sighed. “You’re right, Clark. People change. Situations change. And you realise you don’t really want what you thought you wanted.”
“Or maybe like you said, we never actually read the situation right in the first place.” Clark let go of her hand and placed an arm around her shoulder. “No one said growing up was gonna be easy.”
Chloe slipped an arm around his waist and nestled closer to him, resting her head against the side of his shoulder as they walked along. “Well, it would have been nice to have had some warning, or some pointers along the way. ‘Heartbreak at the next turn ahead’, that sort of thing.”
Clark chuckled. “Well, at least we can learn from our mistakes and move on.” He gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. “You sure you’re okay?”
“Yeah…kind of relieved, actually.” Chloe glanced up at him. “How about you? You’re usually an inconsolable mess for weeks after a Lana break-up. I’d have pegged you for a full-scale barn-mope-a-thon right about now.”
“’Full-scale barn-mope-a-thon’. Only you could come up with that,” Clark laughed. “On the contrary, Chloe. I think I’ve finally kicked that habit.”
“Whoo-hoo, break out the champagne!” Chloe chuckled. “Where’s Lana now?”
“Moving out of the farm as we speak. She said to apologise to you for…something.”
Chloe frowned. “Apologise to me? For what? Didn’t she say?”
Clark shook his head. “She said you’d know what for, or that you’d find out, or something along those lines. It was all very cryptic. I guess she’ll leave some clue as to what it’s all about, though.”
“Hmm. Weird.”
They ambled on till they got to the ‘WELCOME TO SMALLVILLE!’ sign.
They stopped and looked at each other.
“City limits,” Chloe said.
“Yeah.” Clark looked at the sign for a moment.
“You wanna head back?” Chloe offered reluctantly.
Good God, no. Clark was enjoying this night walk more than he’d enjoyed anything recently. Chloe had a way of making him relax and just be himself. Besides, he had no desire to return to the farm and watch Lana finish packing. He’d said his goodbyes to Lana, and that was that.
And that was why he felt so free, he suddenly he realised. The entire relationship with Lana had been a dead albatross around his neck that he’d been dragging around, the last vestiges of a childhood crush that had died long ago but that he’d refused to bury. By the time he and Lana finally got together, the foundation was already shot.
There’d been nothing to save.
But Clark being Clark, he’d tried to hold on, to do the right thing by Lana. He’d put her through so much already, he felt it would destroy her completely or send her over the edge if she knew the truth about how he felt.
Or that she would be so hell-bent on revenge that she would reveal to the world - or to Lex, his arch enemy - the truth about him, that he was really a super-powered alien. And Lex Luthor had been known to be less than kind to those who were…different.
No, Clark definitely did not want to head back to the farm just yet.
But he did want to spend the rest of the evening with the perky blonde by his side.
And he knew exactly how to make the evening perfect for both of them.
“Clark?” Chloe wiggled her fingers in front of his face. “Hello? Where did you go? I asked if you wanted to head back.”
Clark turned to her, big grin on his face.
“How’d you like to go for a run?”
Chloe blinked. “A run?”
“A run.”
“With you?”
“With me.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Clark, I like jogging as much as the next person, but even in my Air Jordans and on a lifetime supply of Red Bull and coffee, there is absolutely no way I could keep up with you on a run, believe me!”
Clark smiled. “Oh, Chloe,” he admonished, and in one swift movement swept her off her feet and into his arms. “I meant like this.”
“Aaah. Now this is how to travel.” She grinned back as she linked her fingers behind his neck. “So where are we going?”
He grinned, that wide open smile that never failed to turn her heart to mush.
“You’ll see.”
And in one swift moment, he sped off down the road, a red and blue blur in the night.
***
Read Chapter 3 here...