Part One: Girls Only

"Lex finally returned my call," Chloe Sullivan announced to Lois Lane from across their table in the little cafe where the two reporters were having lunch at.

Ever since Lois had started working at the Inquisitor, the two cousins had made it a habit to share lunch together at least once a week. It was one of those rituals that Lois considered 'Chloe' time where they would leave out the shop talk and just catch up on things, the way family were supposed too. Even Clark knew better than to intrude on these occasions, having been told by Lois that she and Chloe used this time to talk about him which was enough to scare the Kansas farm boy even more than Kryptonite.

Lois did so love messing with Clark.

"Lex?"Lois raised a brow and stared at her cousin over her cup of coffee. "I know you and Jimmy decided to take a break but Lex? You can do better."

Chloe threw Lois a withering look for bringing up Jimmy. Jimmy had been offered a fabulous opportunity to work in Europe for six months. He had been offered the job as the photographer to a well known writer of travel books whose next work featured Europe. The man wanted a photographic record of the trip to accompany the book and he had seen some of Jimmy's Green Arrow pictures on the net and was suitably impressed.

Although he had initially turned down the job, Chloe had talked him into taking it because the opportunity was too good to miss and she didn't want him to turn it down just because of her. While in theory, that seemed like the noble sacrifice, in truth, Chloe missed him terribly. However, in true Chloe pragmatism, she had told Jimmy that this would be an opportunity to take a break from their relationship and examine things. Jimmy hadn't been happy about it but Chloe didn't want him tethered to her while he was away.

"Very funny," Chloe retorted. "Actually I called him about Lana's batchelorette party. Nell apparently can't make it. She and her husband are taking their annual trip to Vermont."

"Vermont?" Lois exclaimed. "You're kidding me."

"Nope," Chloe frowned, remembering how hard Lana had tried to show it didn't hurt that Nell had once again opted to pick her husband over the niece she had raised. "According to Lex, Lana was pretty upset about it even though she tried to hide it."

"Who can blame her? That's pretty cold." Lois replied sympathetically.

Since Lana had been let in on Clark's secret, the three women had actually grown a lot closer without that particular subject clouding all their conversations. It helped not having to lie about Clark and though they didn't go out of their way to describe in too much detail about Kal-El and Krypton, Lana at least knew that there was a good reason for secrecy. It also said something about her feelings regarding Clark's welfare that she kept the truth from her husband to be, Lex.

"Anyway, I called Lex and I told him that I'd like to do something special for Lana to cheer her up and you know how extravagant billionaires can be?" Chloe teased.

"I've got some idea," Lois threw Chloe a pointed look for invoking the Oliver factor. "Move along Sullivan."

Chloe laughed, "Well he offered the use of the Luthor jet to take us to Acapulco for the weekend."

"Acapulco, as in beaches and tanned cabana boys giving you drinks with cute umbrellas in them, that Acapulco?" Lois asked with interested.

"The very same," Chloe smiled. "I figured we'd take Lana down there, get in some shopping, some beach time and take her mind of Nell not being able to show up?

"Sounds good to me," Lois replied. "Although I can tell you now, we're going to have a problem with this." She looked at her cousin with a knowing expression.

"Clark?" Chloe said with a wince.

"Clark."

*************

"I don't like this," Clark Kent grumbled after hearing Lois' plans for the weekend.

"Big surprise there Smallville," Lois sighed exchanging a look with Martha Kent who was presently in the kitchen preparing dinner for her son and the young woman who was like a daughter to her, in more ways than one now that she and Clark were dating. "Help me out here Mrs. Kent. We're trying to give Lana a great weekend away. So what if it's Lex paying the bill. She is his fiancée."

Clark Kent's expression soured whenever that phrase was used in context with Lex Luthor and Lana Lang. Even if he was over her, Clark was not at all happy that the person she had pledged her life to was Lex. Not after Clark had seen what Lex was capable of, the least of which is involvement in Section 33.1.

"Clark honey," Martha approached from the kitchen, removing the oven mitts over her fingers, "I know you don't like it but whatever else Lex might be, it does really look like he cares for Lana and this isn't about Lex, this is about Lana's friends taking her away for a weekend. I don't see any harm in it."

"What are you going to do all weekend anyway?" Clark grumbled, knowing when he was outvoted. This was almost as bad when he'd get outvoted by his parents instead of his mother and his girlfriend. Actually the question wasn't so much what they would do all weekend but rather what he would do all weekend. It wasn't as if he had any guy friends to hang out with since Pete left town and Lex, well Lex was no friend that was sure. Maybe he'd take a trip himself, run down to Star City and hang with Oliver for a few days.

"It is a resort, we'll find something to do other than check out cute cabana boys," Lois teased, giving him a wink of pure mischief.

"Oh make me feel better, why don't you?" he sulked, flopping onto to the sofa unhappily.

"Oh come on Smallville," Lois sat down next to him and wrapped an arm around him, "you're kind of a tough act to follow you know, I wouldn't worry."
"Really?" Clark looked at her with a smug smile guessing there were some perks to being Kryptonian although impressing his girlfriend wouldn't have been one Jor-El or his father would approve of.

"Really," Lois leaned in to give him a quick kiss.

Martha smiled, returning to the kitchen seeing that all was well between Clark and Lois. Even though the relationship had taken her by surprise, she had to admit, she was pleased by how well it worked. Perhaps there had been something there from the very first, which could explain the duo's early relationship. Martha couldn't say for certain but anything that made her boy happy won his mother's heart.

"It wouldn't be a bad thing for Chloe either," Lois added as Martha made her retreat. "I think she needs to get away for a wild weekend. I think she's still a little sore over Jimmy."

"Jimmy," Clark shrugged. For some reason, Clark couldn't seem to like Jimmy Olsen. Maybe the guy tried to hard or something, Clark couldn't put his finger on it. Certainly, he didn't think Jimmy was good enough for Chloe.

"Oh stop it Smallville," Lois smacked him playfully. "He made her very happy you know."

"Then he shouldn't have left," Clark retorted. "I mean if I felt that strongly for a girl, I wouldn't be going anywhere."

"Well you do sort of have an unfair advantage Clark, not everyone can fly rings around the planet faster than the speed of sound."

"Hey I've only tried that once," Clark protested, "and I was so wiped out when I got home that I ate everything in the house including that box of stale cheerios you left here six months ago."

"I remember," Lois retorted. "I had to pick up Clarkie a new bag of dog biscuits."

Clark gave her a look, "his name is Shelby and stop changing the subject."

"Clark," Martha came out of the kitchen again, setting the casserole she had been making on the table, prompting Lois to help with setting the table. "You know Chloe didn't want him to miss such great opportunity. I mean compared to working in the basement of the Daily Planet, his pictures in a book is quite an accomplishment. If it were me, I'd tell him to go too."

"Ditto," Lois added as she started putting placemats across the table.

"Great, now you're ganging up on me," he complained as he stood up to help. "I'm just saying that if he really, really cared about her, he'd stay. Job opportunity or not."

"Well he didn't," Lois frowned at him. "He went and she's feeling miserable so if Lex Luthor is willing to pony up a free trip to a place where she might meet someone nice and have a good time, you are going to put on a smile and wish us bon voyage" Got it?"

Lois" tone indicated that this wasn't up for negotiation.

"Mom?" Clark looked to Martha for help.

"Didn't you say you were old enough to make your own decisions, sweetie?" Martha replied with a smile of mischief.

"Fine," he rolled his eyes muttering, "throw that back in my face."

"Look," Lois came up to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. "A couple of Mai Tais, a few sail boarding lessons and both Chloe and Lana will be as good as new. Trust me, we'll be fine. What could possibly go wrong?"

Clark stared at her with a straight face, "is this a trick question?"

"Clark are you impugning my ability to keep us out of trouble?" She looked at him through narrowed eyes, dropping her arms to her hips in classic female in battle pose.

"Lois, you are trouble," Clark blurted out. "If you had a middle name, it would be trouble or catastrophe."
"Smallville, I can't talk to you like this." Lois threw her hands up in defeat. 'Just for that, I am not bringing you back a souvenir."

Subject: England is great!

From:

To: .com

====================================================

Hey Chloe,

I'm sorry I took a few days to get back to your last email but I kind of got swamped. Mr. Nelson is pretty cool; we've been traveling all over England the last few days. See the attachment for my shots of Glastonbury and Salisbury Plain. Got some amazing shots although I wish it wasn't so damn wet. It's always raining here. Anyway, tell Lois I looked up your cousin Lucy. She's pretty cool. Lucy's been showing me around London. We've been to a couple of bars…or as they call them here 'pubs? I can't get used to the taste of warm beer or why they call fries chips. I guess that's they need a travel book so dumb Americans like us get it.

I'll be heading across the Channel tomorrow; Lucy says she might tag along while we go through France. Mr. Nelson doesn't seem to mind and Lucy is pretty cool. I'll write again when I can. Miss you.

Love

Jimmy.

***********

Sometimes making the sacrifice for love could really suck.

Chloe tried not to feel jealous as she read the email from Jimmy, especially when he continued to describe how great a time he was having with Lucy Lane, Lois' younger sister and her cousin. Lucy was not only flighty and a looker, she was also charming to the opposite sex and generally great fun to be with. Not at all like Jimmy's regular girlfriend, girl Friday to a clandestine super hero from Krypton and basement dweller in the Daily Planet.

She knew she shouldn't feel bad. Jimmy had been prepared to turn it down but the offer was too good and he was languishing here in the Daily Planet, Chloe knew it. Furthermore, if she had been a little bit more supportive when he presented his 'Lex working with the Egyptians" theory before he went up to Pauline Kahn's office to pitch the idea, he might not have been relegated to the basement with her.

Still, hindsight was everything and now she was sitting here feeling miserable and alone with the only thing of note in her social calendar, being the weekend away with Lois and Lana. Clark and Lois had been nice enough to invite her out whenever they went to the movies and the Talon but Chloe felt like a third wheel even though both had tried their hardest to not make her feel that way.

"Hey, Madame Editor," a voice called out to her from the other side of the room. Chloe looked up and saw a familiar face that made her smile somewhat.

"Mr. White." Chloe smiled at the legendary newsman who path had crossed hers and Clark some three years ago. "What are you doing here?" She asked pushing away from her desk to meet him at the door.

"Well I got on my knees and begged my old pal Pauline for a job and after she let me sweat it out as a freelancer for a couple years, I've finally earned a desk in the news room."

"That's wonderful," Chloe said truly pleased. Perry White was a journalist of the highest caliber and after some unfortunate run ins with Lionel Luthor had been commended to the journalistic wilderness for a time. It was good to see him back at a respectable newspaper again. "I'm really happy for you."

"Thank you kindly Madame Editor," he smiled using the term fondly, remembering the young woman's indignation when he suggested that she might have made up her stories for the Smallville Torch. "If you don't mind doing some research for me, I'd really appreciate it."

Helping out a newsman like Perry White, Chloe's eyes widened in eagerness. "Absolutely, what can I do for you?"

"It isn't much really," Perry explained handing her the file. "Something strange going on in Tierra

Colorada. Seems like there's been a rash of kidnappings. It isn't unusual for places south of the border to pick off tourists that venture out into the sticks and hold them for ransom. In Brazil, it's a part of the tourist experience, like Mardi Gras. I just need you to pull up any articles from the local papers and police reports for background material."

"Sure no problem," Chloe said enthusiastically, happy to be doing this instead of obituaries. Besides, Tierra Colorada wasn't all that far from Acapulco. She made a mental note to tell Lois that they should stick to the resorts and not go wandering off the beaten track. "Actually, that's good to know."
"Why planning a trip down that way?" Perry asked with a smirk.

"Something like that," Chloe answered, opting not to tell him that she was joining Lex Luthor's fiancée for a weekend away. The Luthors weren't exactly Perry's favorite family. "I'll get right on this Mr. White."
"Call me Perry," the older man said starting to leave. "Thanks Madame Editor, you're a lifesaver."
"Like I haven't heard that before," Chloe sighed before picking up the file and getting to work.

These days, it was the story of her life.