Oliver smiled at his girlfriend - offical as of a few seconds ago - and pulled her closer into his side so he could kiss the top of her head. As she began to descend the stairs, he had to let her go so that he could responsibly turn off the power. Out of curiosity, he looked to the table that Chloe had been poured over, paused, and then grabbed the yearbooks. He may not have known Chloe 1.0, but he figured it wouldn't hurt to hear about that version of the woman he loved straight from her own beautiful lips.
Grinning cheekily, he showed the books to Chloe when they closed the door to the loft. He waggled his eyebrows suggestively as he placed the memories between them on the couch. In return, Chloe rolled her eyes. "What exactly are you wanting here/"
Hardly ashamed of his sappy nature in the privacy of his own home, Oliver smiled, "To know all of you."
The mocking stare she gave him was belittled by the dancing of her green eyes. "And am I to expect an equal exchange of information concerning you?"
With a roll of his eyes, he agreed to her terms. Silently, he argued that Chloe already knew him better than anybody. To her, he was an open book, no need for this 'equal exchange of information. For her, however, he'd continue the game she played.
The sigh she exuded was dramatic and fake when she replied, "What do you want to know?"
"I guess it would be too much to ask to hear your story from the beginning?"
"Ah, so you want to hear about the first day I met Clark and kissed him because as I told him, I didn't want there to be any tension between us." She had a mischievous, crooked grin in place, seeing if he would raise to the bait. When his only response was an equally challenging smile, Chloe gave another dramatic sight. This time, however, she was a little more serious in her retelling of her high school misadventures, though for some reason she seemed to think it necessary to stay on the topic of boys.
He listened to Chloe describe the jock that had charmed her enough to get her number. Internally, he grimaced at the thought that a young, bright-eyed Chloe had been so insecure about herself to not only give a guy like that her number, but then to still agree to go on a date with him even after he had ditched her for some other girl. What really got to him was the meat of her story - how the date had ended. He had to force himself not to clench his fists in anger at hearing how the jock turned out to be a metahuman intent on stealing the warmth of another's body, freezing them to death so that he could have a brief moment of relief from the cold.
Though she retold the events with a small smile and an easy manner, lighting up especially at the part where she was miraculously saved (having been unaware of Clark's superman abilities at that time), Oliver could only imagine the fear that young girl had to have lived through at having to run for her life from something that she didn't truly understand. How traumatizing had that evening been for her? - not only for being a near death experience but also traumatizing to her self-esteem when it came to dating.
Not able to sense the extent of his frustration at the tale, but seeming to at least gather his last train of thought, Chloe scoffed impetuously. "Trust me, that's hardly the worst date / boyfriend I've ever had."
With a grimace, Oliver did his best to keep a light tone. "A part of me doesn't want to know what could be considered a worse date, while another part of me is too curious to let that information slide." This was, after all, information that made up one of the most amazing human beings he had the pleasure of coming across in his life.
"Well there was that one guy that could multiple himself and decided that one of the many advantages of that power was that he could date multiple women at once: Lana and me. Then when we confronted him about it, threw us off a bridge."
Oliver didn't have to fathom a guess as to how the two had survived.
"Then there was the one time I became enamoured by an old friend that had just gotten back from surgery and physical therapy, telekinesis abilities in tow. When I discovered that he had gone on a revenge mission to kill everyone he felt was responsible for his accident, he telekinetically threw a 2x4 at my head."
Vaguely, Oliver remembered a time when Chloe had teasingly remarked that her and Oliver's relationship was actually one of the healthiest she'd been in. At the time, he hadn't taken her seriously - thinking she had been leaning towards the dramatics. KNowing now that she hadn't been exaggerating, he wasn't sure if he could appreciate that sentiment.
Gently, he reached out to caress her blonde hair away from her face. Though there was no sign of bitterness or resentment in her expression, he felt the need to comfort her. Lovingly, he whispered, "You deserved so much more." More than an adolescence of dealing with homicidal psychopaths as potential romantic interests, and trials that weren't even hers to partake in. More than the blow by blow to her self-esteem. He leaned in for a quick kiss. "And I will do my absolute best to make sure that from here on in you get all that you deserve."
Chloe rolled her eyes fondly. "Such a sap."