A Spoonful of Sugar
A/N: This fic is dedicated to all those of you who are fans of The South Beach Diet. As Chloe finds out, the diet sometimes brings unexpected benefits. :)
Chapter One
Clark pushed open the door to the Talon armed with a bagful of candy and a huge grin. At a table across the room, a blonde head bent intently over the keyboard of an open laptop, slender fingers busily entering text on the screen.
Clark felt his grin widen as he watched his friend Chloe Sullivan at work, filled with a renewed sense of wonder that she was alive at all. Suppressing a shudder, he remembered the grayish pallor of her skin against the white hospital sheets, after she'd nearly killed herself saving her cousin, and compared it to the rosy flush tinting her cheeks in the glow of her laptop's monitor. Somehow, the sight made even Lana's tragic accident hurt him less. As painful as that memory was, the relief he felt every time he looked at Chloe was stronger.
These days, when Clark Kent counted his blessings, Chloe Sullivan was first on his list. And so, lately, he found his feet turning in this direction more and more.
The blonde head popped up, revealing clear hazel eyes and a bright smile. Clark shook his bag enticingly. "How about a chocolate break?
Chloe dimpled, but shook her head, turning back to her story almost at once. "Sorry, Clark, I'm on a diet."
Clark's stare took in the shapely curves under her red blouse and the temptingly tight jeans. With a start, he realized that he was beginning to squint into X-ray mode. Sternly, he suppressed the urge. "You're on a diet?" he replied in disbelief. "Why?"
Chloe's eyes danced in amusement. "Thanks for resisting the radiologic exam. I guess that's a compliment." Her fingers resumed their dance over the computer's keys. "But I need to lose five pounds pronto if I'm going to look good in a bikini next month. So I decided to try the South Beach Diet. No carbs and no sugar for the first week, sorry."
Clark still stared in complete confusion. "I think you'd look great in a bikini just the way you are now."
"It's not for you," she answered, stilling her hands as she looked up to meet his eyes. "It's for Jimmy. I'm spending a week at the beach with him in July."
Clark's good mood disappeared instantly. He'd forgotten all about the freckle-faced wonder the minute he'd left Smallville, and he wished that Chloe had done the same. What did she see in the guy, anyway? True, he was nice, but he certainly wasn't worth giving up sugar.
"I told Jimmy what happened at the dam," she said quietly. "He insisted on making time for us, even if it meant giving up a plum assignment in D.C. He said it's about time we both appreciate what we have, while we can."
Clark had to admit that he knew exactly how Jimmy felt. Meeting Chloe's calm, happy gaze, he squirmed inwardly, thinking of all the times he'd taken Chloe's friendship for granted, or, worse, blown it off entirely. Unlike him, Jimmy knew a good thing when he saw it.
If Chloe wanted Jimmy, he had no right to stand in their way.
Morosely, Clark laid the bag on the floor, out of sight, and changed the subject, all the while fighting off the mental image of a tanned and happy Chloe playing in the surf with a lobster-red, flat-chested boy photographer in baggy trunks.
At least, he thought with some satisfaction, the kid had a better-than-even chance of getting a very, very painful sunburn.