Author's Note: They really do not give you enough room for a summary, so this should help explain some things, but may contain spoilers for the story so if you do not like that, you may skip it, but if you get confused, it might be a good things to look back at.

Smallville Alternate Reality. Clark already found out he is from another planet, but still has yet to talk to Lana. She is with Whitney, but often feels alone. Pete moved away earlier, so it is just Chloe and Clark. She has feelings for him, but long ago accepted that he will never notice her let alone return those feelings. She is, however, getting sick of him pinning for Lana when he has never been able to talk to her. She convinces him to join an online dating service, which she also does in hopes of getting over him and finding somebody. Her screen name is LadyLochness, his is PermanentVisitor, and to avoid awkwardness, they tell each other their aliases before doing anything. Clark starts talking to somebody called Porcelain, and Chloe talks to somebody named The Infuriator…well, you will have to see. Chat Text is Apple Symbols font. Email text is American Typewriter font. Chat colors are blue for Clark, orange for Porcelain (A nod to the Insect Queen's bee costume, yellow was obviously not an option, as well as the fact that everybody makes a big deal about her and pink which probably bugs her almost as much as it bugs me. Bugs. Ha. ), Light gray for The Infuriator (only because I cannot use white), and Chloe is pink (because both she and I appreciate irony)

Prologue

Chloe walked into the Torch office. Her best friend was sitting in her desk chair.

The Torch was the High school Paper, which Chloe was editor of. It seemed a little odd for a freshman to be editor, but Smallville was not really a news-conscious town. In fact, if Clark had not been a friend she had guilted into the whole thing, she probably would not have any staff. Okay, so maybe that was a slight exaggeration, but not by much.

"So," Chloe said, alerting Clark to her presence. He immediately stood, giving her back her chair. She appreciated the gesture, but it really was not necessary. "Why are you hiding out in here? Not that I mind, abusing the facilities is a perk of the job, but just out of curiosity?"

"Hello to you too," Clark said with a smirk, "And I wasn't hiding."

"Then what are you doing. I find it hard to believe you would voluntarily spend a free period in the office of an extracurricular you hate and were forced into without something that resembles a good reason."

"I don't hate it." Clark said defensively.

"Uh, huh." Chloe said sarcastically. She rolled her eyes. Clark always had to be polite. He was raised with strong morals, and he never wanted to hurt people's feelings if it could be avoided. It was one of the many things she loved about him, but it could also be annoying. They both knew, given the choice, he would never write another article again. "So, what are you doing in here?"

"I just figured you'd be here." She felt her heart lurch, and while she tried to repress the urge to smile, a little smirk snuck its way onto her face. "I mean, you know, it's not like I have anybody else to talk to since Pete moved away."

Chloe could not help but feel disappointed, but she tried not to show it. All she said was, "Gee, thanks." Sarcastically.

"You know what I mean." Clark said. Chloe nodded.

Pete had been Clark's best friend since the two boys were five. Actually, to the best she could tell, Pete had been Clark's only friend.

Chloe moved to Smallville in middle school, and the three had become very close, but then Pete's mother had gotten a job somewhere else, and he left. So, this year, it was just Chloe and Clark, which was great, but a little lonely for Clark. Chloe could tell. For some reason, Clark often seemed somewhere else. And not just because he sometimes disappeared with no explanation. No, he had this way of being right there with you, and being a very good listener, but at the same time, you knew he was struggling with something deep down, something he would never share.

It was really a choice for Chloe. She picked her friends carefully, and she felt Clark was all she needed. But she knew that with Clark, he would not mind a few more friends. For some reason though, he did not seem to think they would accept him. School politics aside, Clark was charming and handsome, smart and funny, and a really great friend. She could attest to that. She had liked him the day she met him…but that was a different story. The point was, if he were not so self-conscious, he might be a little less lonely.

"Well, you know, there is that party this weekend. You could go, meet some people, spread your wings." She offered.

"Why would I want to do that?"

"Because guys need guy friends. And I can tell you've been pretty lonely since Pete left."

"That's not-"

"It's okay. I get it, and I'm not offended, you guys have been friends since the sandbox." She smiled, picturing what the two must have looked like at age five, playing around in a sandbox. "But maybe partying a little would be good for you."

"I didn't think you were a big high school party advocate."

"I'm not against them. Besides, I'm not the one hanging out in a place they hate because they're lonely."

"I told you, I don't hate it. Look, do you want me to go?"

"No, I, you're not bothering me. You can hang here anytime, I love your company. But you've been lonely, and I'm worried about you. And I hate to play the mom, especially since you already have the perfect one, but if you don't do anything social and then complain about how lonely you are, you have nobody to blame but yourself."

I sighed, "Everybody always brings date's to these things."

"So, ask somebody."

His face changed, and it only took a millisecond for Chloe to know what he was thinking. She waited for him to say something.

"I don't think there's anybody I could ask. I mean, you can't just ask a girl unless you really like her."

"And, in your case, you can't ask her if you do really like her."

Clark looked at Chloe, "What do you mean?"

"Do you seriously not know how transparent you are? I know what you were thinking about… who you were thinking about. Cheerleader, brunette, initials L.L."

"I wasn't-" Chloe glared at him, and he stopped. He had been in love with Lana Lang since he was five, or at least, that was what Pete said, and Chloe believed him. It was the truth, and it was not too hard to figure out the day she moved there by the way he looked at his beautiful next-door neighbor. When they had met, chloe had wished he would look at her like that, and she had continued wishing for a long time after. But he never would, she knew that. She could not help getting excited or hoping in her heart. That was how love was, and she was in love with him. But she knew he was not in love with her and never would be. And she had accepted that. She could live with being his friend, but watching him moon over Lana was just getting plain sad. Not only was the girl popular, but she had a boyfriend, and no clue that Clark existed. She understood that he could not feel for her, but did he have to feel for Miss Popular.

"Clark, this is getting ridiculous. You have had a thing for this girl since you could crawl, been in the same grade as her, lived next door to her, and she does not even know your name. Either make a move or move on, because really, this is starting to get a little sad."

"She knows my name." Clark said.

"Maybe in the, it's-a-small-town-and-we-wave-to-each-other-in-the-hall kind of way, but I bet she couldn't pick you out of a lineup. Not that it's her fault, seeing as how you have never had a conversation with her that consisted of anything other than her saying hi and you standing there like and idiot."

Whenever Lana was around, Clark basically turned to jelly. He fell down, tripping on everything. He got clumsy and nervous and could never find his voice.

"She's said more to me than that."

"Really?" Chloe asked, surprised.

"Yeah."

"What did she say?" Clark muttered something, "What?"

"She asked if I wouldn't mind scooting down a little in my seat so she could see the blackboard." Chloe smirked.

"Look, maybe you need a girl who you don't have to talk to."

"Is this some sort of riddle?"

Chloe laughed, "There's this website. You fill out a profile, and they find somebody compatible."

"A dating site?" I groaned.

"Don't knock it till you try it."

"You've tried it?"

"Well, not yet, but I was planning to. I am in a serious romantic rut. I haven't had a date in months, and I haven't had a boyfriend in…well, ever."

I smirked, "And you criticize me."

"Hey, at least I'm getting out there. And you should too."

"I don't know. Having a computer choose a girl for you. It doesn't seem very romantic."

"Wake up, this is the twenty-first century, the computer age."

"I don't think so."

"Come on, you have two options, do something, anything about the Lana situation, or move on. You're sitting here in this sad, pathetic limbo, and I can't stand to watch it anymore."

He sighed. Talking to her, making a move, was both exiting and terrifying, but, a dating site? He really did not like the idea. And both of them knew why, because as uncomfortable corn-fed down home as he was with finding his true love through a machine, the main reason was that regardless of the nothing that had happened, he did not feel right writing off the option. While he would never admit it out loud, he was so in love with her he could not see straight. The idea of forgetting her and moving on…he could not even comprehend it. As far as he was concerned, Lana Lang was the only girl who existed, ever had existed, and ever would exist. She was the only option leaving no alternative. And knowing how pushy Chloe could be when she got something in her head, he knew what he had to do.

"Actually, " he started, cautiously, "it so happens I was going to do something about the I situation. I was going to talk to her."

"Really," Chloe said, surprised, "When?"

"Soon," Clark said, trying to be as vague as possible. He really was planning to do it. Really. He was. But it would take time to prepare. He could not just walk up to her and-

"Well, you have until the end of the day. After that, you have a hot date with your computer." Chloe said, and she walked out of the torch before he could argue.

Clark stood watching Lana and her friends, joking, laughing. She looked like an angel, completely untouchable. He saw her wave to her friends, he saw them walk away, and then she was alone. He took a deep breath, and walked up to her. He tripped when he was inches from her. She looked up at the sound of him crashing to the ground.

"Are you all right?" she asked, offering her hand to help him up. He stared up at her dumbly, not moving. Finally, he got to his feet. He felt like he was going to throw-up. He could not think; he just stood there like a statue. He knew if he attempted anything, he would just collapse again, or sound like an idiot. Really, he just could not form any words or thoughts. Because there she was. Right in front of him. She smelled like lavender soap and an ocean breeze. Her hair was perfect, flowing like ebony silk behind her, her eyes penetrating, so innocent, and yet, so jaded. He just stood there like an idiot. She looked at him.

"Are you okay?" she tried again.

At least nod or something. His mind screamed, but he could not, he was frozen. He heard a car horn, and she turned toward the noise.

She nodded politely. She knew who he was; he had been her neighbor since they were kids. His name was Clark, and he had always seemed like a decent person. She did not really know anything about him, except that he was clumsy. Despite the fact that they had known each other basically their whole lives, they had never spoken. She felt a little sorry for him sometimes, a social outcast from what she could determine, but it was hard to feel anything for him or think anything about him because she did not really know him. She tried to be nice and polite to him, after all, she had nothing against him, but it seemed so strange sometimes, how she had known him forever and they had barely ever said more than hi to one another. She felt bad just leaving, but he appeared fine, a little green maybe, but he did not seem to want her help, or her company. And her ride was here. So, she waved politely, murmured something about hoping her felt better, and got into her boyfriend's car.

Clark watched her drive away. He felt like such a moron. If he could, he would be ringing his own neck right now. Chloe came up behind him. Of course, she would have witnessed the whole train wreck, Clark thought. He finally found his voice.

"So, how do I set up a screen name?" He asked. Chloe smiled.