Title: Something New
Author: Cassandra Mulder
Rating: PG
Spoilers: None to speak of.
Disclaimer: Smallville and poor Clark and Chloe are at the mercy of AlMiles, not me. It's obvious, folks. Tollin/Robbins, DC, and the WB are also kinda interested. No infringement is intended. I just borrow, so don't sue.
Classification: Smallville; Chloe/Clark; angst; romance
Written: January 3 - 5, 2006
Word Count: 2243
Summary: Every New Year there's a chance for new beginnings... Sequel to "Forget It".
A/N: It's done! It's another holiday story that's late, but it's finally done! Part angst, part fluff, part schmoop, I'm pretty happy with it. If you are, too, please leave feedback. hehe And yes, I'm aware dream Clark appears in this story. I grew him up a bit, what can I say? ;)

Chloe was looking through her closet, imagining what she would wear if she had actually been invited anywhere for New Year's Eve, when she heard a knock on her door.

"All clear, Dad!" she threw over her shoulder, and went back to rifling through her clothes.

The door opened and she heard, "It's not Dad."

She spun around to see Clark's head poking through the doorway. "Oh!" she cried in surprise. "Well, I'm... in my pajamas," she said helplessly, scanning the room for her robe.

"I have x-ray vision, so that's not really going to matter," Clark laughed. "I mean, if I used it."

Chloe eyed him suspiciously. "Riiight. So, what brings you to my place at ten forty-five on New Year's Eve, and why did Dad let you in?"

Clark looked embarrassed, and she shook her head. "I was just kidding, Clark."

"Yeah. Um, you said you didn't have any plans, and I thought maybe you could come out to the farm for awhile. If you want to."

There was an awkward pause.

"Mom and Dad got champagne..."

Chloe laughed at that. "Now you're bribing me with bubbly," she teased. "I'll come," she said and tried not to smile at the relieved look on his face. "Just let me get dressed."

"Okay," he said and closed her bedroom door.

Chloe took a deep breath and turned back to the closet. Things had been unbelievably uncomfortable between them for a week, and she didn't know what to do about it. They had barely talked about Christmas Eve at all, but she could hardly think about anything else. If it hadn't been for her three shifts at the Planet that week, she didn't think she would have survived at all.

Now she prayed she would be able to get through a New Year's that would probably include Lana, whom she hadn't spoken to since "the incident" as she had come to refer to it for her sanity's sake. If she had any sanity left at all. Her inability to say no to Clark seemed to be proof enough of that.

The night was mild for nearly January, so she chose a long skirt, boots, and a light sweater for her excursion to the Kent Farm. She unpinned her hair and ran a brush through it, touched up her makeup, grabbed a jacket, and headed for the living room where Clark was sitting on the couch with Gabe, watching sports highlights on ESPN.

"If that's not too fascinating, I'm ready to go," she announced. Their heads snapped up at the same time, and she rolled her eyes. "Did I interrupt you, boys?"

Gabe responded first. "Not really. I've already seen these twice. There's nothing else on."

She laughed. "The ball drops in the Big Apple in ten, you can watch that."

"Yay," her father deadpanned.

"Not much of a New Year's guy, this one," Chloe explained to their guest. "Shall we go?"

"Sure," Clark said, standing to join her.

"You kids have fun. Don't do anything stupid," Gabe instructed.

Chloe went over and kissed him on the cheek. "I won't, Dad. I'll probably be home late, so don't wait up."

"I'll be lucky if I make it to midnight, so don't worry, honey."

"Bye, Mr. Sullivan," Clark said as they headed for the door.

"Take care of my girl, Clark," Gabe called after him.

"Will do," he said, closing the door behind him.

"Yes, he's still overprotective," Chloe said, descending the stairs of the apartment building.

"He knows what a troublemaker you are," Clark teased.

"Please. Just because you get to keep all your troublemaking a secret doesn't mean you can talk about me."

"Yeah. I can," he said smugly, and rushed to his truck to open her door for her.

"The gentleman act is not going to make up for that, mister," she said as she slid in.

"Who's acting?" he shot back before he sped to the driver's side and climbed in.

There was little conversation on the ride to Clark's house. The only sound was the radio, and she couldn't help but think how very emo the music emanating from it sounded. Or maybe it was just her imagination. She had been in a pathetically emo state of mind lately.

When they arrived at the farm, she was surprised that Clark led her to the house instead of the loft, but she went with it. Mr. and Mrs. Kent were still up, watching the celebration in Times Square, and Chloe noticed the conspicuous lack of a party. Frowning, she started to ask why she was their only guest, but she didn't want to sound ungrateful the minute she walked in the door.

She shared idle chat with Martha and was told to help herself to a small array of snacks that were out on the counter. She did so, and Clark joined her at the kitchen table as she sipped a Coke and nibbled at cheese and crackers.

"Nice little gathering ya got here," she said.

Clark shrugged. "I think so."

"Are you going to tell me what's going on?"

"New Year's Eve at the Kent Farm pretty much."

She wasn't convinced, but she knew the best way to get anything out of Clark was to not push. Even when you felt like beating it out of him, which she now knew would do no good anyway.

"Okay. So should I ask where Lana is tonight, or not?"

Ah, the shifty eyes, she thought. Clark was looking increasingly uncomfortable, and that was making her uncomfortable.

"Do you want to go for a walk?" he asked without answering her question.

"Uh, sure." There was no way this was going to be easy, whatever "this" was, but she took her jacket from the back of the chair and put it on.

They went out through the back door, and they were halfway between the house and barn when Clark finally spoke.

"I broke up with Lana."

That sentence - that unimaginable sentence - hung in the night air as Chloe stopped in her tracks and turned to face him.

She was almost uncertain she had heard him correctly, and her face reflected that.

"You heard me right," Clark said, unprompted.

"O - Okay." It was suddenly like her brain had hit a roadblock and she couldn't form a coherent thought, much less a sentence, so she began walking again.

Clark fell into step beside her, waiting, and when she had finally processed the unexpected information, she stopped.

"I, uh... I hope this wasn't because of me," she blurted out. Though it really would have been because of him, considering...

"It was," Clark said. He looked happy about it, too, which only made the entire experience more surreal than it already was.

"Oh my God." Chloe covered her face with her hands, trying to decide if the whole thing was really happening, or she was just pathetically already asleep at home in her own bed.

Clark took both of her wrists and pulled her hands down. "Chloe, I want to be with you."

"Oh my God," she said helplessly. She had waited to hear those words for over six years, and now that she had she was speechless. She also had the distinct feeling she was acting like a Hollywood starlet at the perfect ending of some romantic comedy, but she couldn't be bothered to pick one.

She was already thinking about too many pointless things when Clark had just said he had chosen her. He had chosen her over Lana. No wonder she was convinced the entire scenario was either a dream or a movie.

At his expectant look, she cleared her throat and tried to even out her breathing. Her heart was beating so fast she was afraid she might pass out, and after all the hell he had put her through she was reluctant to jump into his arms the second he said he wanted her.

She took one last deep breath, and finally looked up at the one man that always managed to turn her world upside down in the very way she least expected.

"I'm sorry, Clark. I just never thought this would happen, and now I'm -"

"I know," he said. "And I'm the one that's sorry. I've put you through a lot, and you have always stuck with me. Even when I tried to lose you," he added softly. "I was a kid, a very confused one at that, and I couldn't see the best friend I had right in front of me. The best friend I will ever have." He smiled down at her. "You are everything, Chloe. Smart, beautiful, loyal, understanding, caring - even before you knew my secret. Before you could even remotely fathom anything that was going on with me, you didn't question." He paused. "Much," he teased with a slight shrug.

She laughed, and he was encouraged.

"You were just there. You helped me when no one else would, and you believed me when no one else did. You believe in me more than anyone I've ever known, including my parents."

Chloe was on the verge of tears, and she was afraid if he didn't stop soon she would be a bawling mess in his arms. "Clark..."

"Let me finish?"

"There's more?" she joked. "Okay."

"It's not that I didn't love Lana, but that's different now. I will always love her as a friend, and I hope that doesn't hurt you. The thing I realized was that when I looked at my future and I pictured the one woman I could love and trust to always be right there with me, to accept me for all that I am, it wasn't Lana at all. It was you."

She was helpless to hold back her tears anymore, and she didn't try.

"I love you, Chloe," Clark said, taking her hand and drawing her into his arms.

Chloe clung to him and quietly sobbed into his flannel shirt until she thought she could hold it together. When she pulled back, Clark suddenly looked unsure of himself.

"I thought you might be happy..." he started uncertainly.

She let go of him completely and wiped at her eyes with both hands. "Oh! No, Clark, I am. I'm just really overwhelmed right now. You really know how to spring a shock on a girl."

Clark looked slightly relieved. "I didn't mean to make you cry. I wish I had - Wait right here," he said, and before she could miss him he was back with a box of tissue.

She laughed as she snagged a couple and tried to repair the damage. She was sure she looked awful after that little episode, but unless Clark wanted to fetch her a mirror, too, she would have to deal. He didn't seem to care, so she decided she didn't either.

When she was satisfied the tears were gone, she stuffed the tissue in her pocket, and looked straight up at Clark. He was being careful not to push her, she knew, so she took her time. The stars and the moon shone down from the clear winter sky, giving them just enough illumination. Clark's eyes were sparkling, as cheesy as that sounded in her head, and his hair was almost a dark purple in the faint glow.

He had never looked more beautiful to her, and she knew she was ready to surrender everything. She knew what it took for him to bare his heart, and she knew in hers that he wouldn't hurt her again.

"It probably goes without saying at this point, but... I love you, too, Clark. I always have."

It was like the weight of the world was lifted off of her when Clark broke into a smile that she had learned over the years was only for her. Her smile quickly matched his, and as he gathered her in his arms, the light reflected off her watch, reminding her of the time. She glanced at Clark before pressing the light, and let out a slight giggle.

"Did we miss midnight?" he asked, trying to see the time.

"Nope, we still have three minutes," she said and grabbed his hand. She started to run, and Clark found himself scrambling to catch up.

"But Chloe..."

Chloe wouldn't be deterred. "C'mon! We'll miss it!"

They burst through the kitchen door just as the Little Apple in Manhattan, Kansas, was beginning to drop at the minute mark. She was out of breath, and she quickly apologized to Clark's slightly startled parents.

She clutched Clark's hand as they counted down from ten, and when they finally reached zero, he pulled her close and kissed her deeply.

Their surroundings were forgotten momentarily until they heard Martha gasp from the kitchen doorway. Clark broke the kiss, and Chloe could barely contain her laughter at the look on his mother's face.

"I'm - Uh... I didn't mean to interrupt," Martha said, looking slightly confused. "I didn't know..." She gestured towards them.

Chloe gave Clark a playful scowl for leaving his own mother so out of the loop, but at the same time she was grateful he had been brave enough to tell her what was going on first, just as he should have.

"It's okay, Mrs. Kent," she said, wrapping her arms around Clark's waist. "This is something new for all of us."

Finis