You'd break your neck to keep your chin up (1/1)
Author: serafina19
Title: You’d break your neck to keep your chin up
Summary: “Because...” Oliver shook his head as his voice trailed. What could he tell her that she would believe? “Because you deserve better and I can’t do this anymore. Not with you.”
Rating: PG
Timeline: AU Post-Checkmate
You’d break your neck to keep your chin up
“I can’t do this anymore.”
Chloe paused as the cold tone of his words. Turning her head back to him, she could see him sitting up in his bed, facing away from her. Just hours ago, she was accusing him of falling for her and now he was letting her go. “Why?”
“Because...” Oliver shook his head as his voice trailed. What could he tell her that she would believe? “Because you deserve better and I can’t do this anymore. Not with you.”
His entire life, he had been this guy, the guy used by women to forget their problems, but it was different with Chloe. He wanted to see her genuinely happy one day and this would always hold her back. This kept her in the confines in Watchtower or of his bed and that wasn’t what Oliver wanted for her. He... cared too much to keep it like that.
He had done it once before with Lois, clinging to the single light of the dark tunnel of his life. It turned out that walking away had been the right decision then, and it was likely the right thing to do now.
Oliver could see through the smiles that she faked in front of everyone, as she still carried the burden on her shoulders. He thought he was helping her, but he was just taking her mind off it, and considering the Kryptonite weapons situation, Chloe would never trust him enough to talk about it.
Narrowing her eyes, Chloe turned fully and said, “Ollie... it was a joke.” She knew that this was what it was, not a relationship or a spelling bee. The spoon incident aside, Oliver understood her need for no strings and they had been going through the motions just fine.
But it wasn't fine for Oliver anymore and he knew this was for the best. That passing comment, joke or otherwise, had registered something in his mind that he never realized. He was dragging Chloe through all of his bad habits and it had to stop. Outside of Watchtower, she was a regular woman, and she had a chance for happiness if she let herself. And Oliver had to let her try, even if it led to his own loneliness.
Standing up, he walked to her slowly. Clad only in the lilac bra he had practically torn off her a few hours ago, there was no doubt of how beautiful she was to him. His hand reaching forward to touch against her cheek, Oliver soon moved his fingers under her chin, tilting it up slightly.
Her eyes looked at him intently, although there was confusion hidden behind her usual stare. “You need to move on from all this. The path you’re on right now isn’t healthy, trust me.” Leaning his head down, he kissed her slowly, just to have a final reminder as to what he was letting go.
His hands smoothed down her neck, her shoulders, her arms, to eventually grab her hands. Stepping back slightly, Oliver whispered, “You are an amazing woman, Chloe Sullivan. I hope you know that.”
She was speechless. The words kept trying to come, but as Chloe opened her mouth, all she could do was dip her head down. Releasing his hands, she quickly gathered her clothes and left the room.
As she stood in front of the elevator, Chloe slipped her shirt over her head, noticing the weight on her chest once her fingers curled around the elevator gate. She tried to fight it, but no matter how hard she tried, it wasn’t going away. So she kept her head down as she entered the elevator, not taking the chance of Oliver seeing the single tear slip down her cheek.
~End~
Sera's Scribbles: I probably shouldn't be writing while on cold meds, but I wasn't able to get this lyric out of my head until I tried to write something.
Accidental sequel --> Reset