--1--
Chloe couldn't believe it. How exciting! She'd just picked up a copy of the Planet to read during her morning coffee and flipped to the entertainment section. (It was a slow news day.)
And there, on the front page of the section was a picture of Mary Jane Watson, performing in The Importance of Being Earnest, which had come to Metropolis on its tour.She smiled, reading the rave review and thinking back to years that felt eons away, before she had moved to Smallville.
She and MJ had been best friends as kids. They'd had so much in common, both big dreamers who saw the world not for what it was but what it might be. Besides that they'd come from dysfunctional families with poor father figures. Chloe remembered MJ spending the night with her one night after her father had come home especially drunk, how they'd taken care of each other when the chips were down.
They'd both cried miserably when Chloe found out she was going to move away. MJ claimed she was only crying because Chloe was moving to the middle of nowhere and how on earth was she going to become a reporter in a cornfield?
At first Chloe had wondered whether it were the same Mary Jane, but looking at the photo, she knew there was no mistaking the smile or the red hair for that matter.
She smiled dreamily at the paper a while, reminiscing until her coffee got cold. Oliver found her like that, having shown up to ask whether she wanted to do lunch with Clark and Lois later that day.
"What's got you glowing?" he asked, curiously glancing at the paper in her hands.
"I just found an article in the paper about my best childhood friend. Looks like she's in town for a couple of weeks. I lost touch with her ages ago. It's a shame really, but I was just thinking I'd look her up while she's here."
Oliver glanced at the paper. "You know Mary Jane? I thought Clark was your best friend growing up."
Chloe shook her head. "This was before I moved to Smallville," she said. "Which seems like an impossible lifetime ago, by the way. But how do you know her?"
Oliver shrugged, rummaging in the fridge for a bottle of water. "I've been to New York on tons of business trips. Most recently because I was looking into recruiting the wall-craller, but he's too hard to get a hold of. Never ended up meeting the guy. I asked around a lot and found out there were several stories circulating around Mary Jane and the spider, so I went to one of her shows and came back stage to meet her. Nice girl," he added.
Chloe only frowned. "You went to recruit who?"
Oliver glanced at her. "You need to read the Bugle on occasion, Sidekick. The guys been plastered all over that paper for a couple of years now. Goes by Spiderman. I can't tell if it's gadgets or if he's a metahuman, although I'm leaning toward the latter, but he has the abilities of a spider."
Chloe looked shocked. "What do you mean?"
"Like, he can climb on walls and shoot webs at people."
"Ew."
Oliver looked at her expression and laughed. "Problem with arachnids?"
"Never cared for them, no."
"Well, trust me, this guy is far from insect-like, whatever the Bugle says. They've got him painted as some sort of criminal, but my sources have been telling me otherwise for sometime."
"What did MJ have to say about it?" Chloe asked.
"She didn't say much, actually. Seemed a little reluctant to talk about it, actually. Not surprising, really. I got the feeling she was hiding something, but I figured if it were reversed and someone were pressing you for information about our favorite costume-clad friends, I'd want the person to drop it. So I did."
Chloe frowned. She had been thinking how different she and MJ must have turned out. After all, MJ had gotten her dream. She was a celebrated actress. Chloe, on the other hand had gotten her dream and waved at it as it passed her by. But listening to Oliver talk about MJ possibly protecting some superhero vigilante, she thought maybe they had even more in common than when they were kids.
"So you want to go see the show, then?" Oliver asked.
Chloe looked up at him. "Isn't it sold out by now?" she asked. She had been thinking what a shame it was she probably couldn't go.
Oliver nodded. "Well, yeah. But come on. It's me." He smirked and Chloe rolled her eyes. "I have season tickets to that theatre. I was thinking I'd go anyway. She's really pretty talented, and like I said, she's a nice girl."
"That would be amazing, Ollie." She looked back at the photo in the paper and had trouble hiding her excitement. She couldn't wait to see her old friend again.
"Great, I'll tell Clark and Lois. Lois has a press pass to the show and she's dragging Clark along. Something about needing 'more culture,' " he chuckled.
"Smallville, would you quit fidgeting?" Lois demanded. Clark was looking extremely uncomfortable in his bow tie, witch he kept adjusting. Lois slapped his hand away.
"Sorry. I just feel so uncomfortable in a tux," he said awkwardly. He turned to Oliver. "So you think this girl knows something about the bug running loose in New York?"
Oliver nodded. "Yeah, but whatever she knows, she's not talking. Which," he glanced at Chloe, "is understandable. The wall crawler's probably lucky to have her."
They were interrupted by the sound of female shrieks. Clark and Oliver jumped, looking around to find MJ and Chloe embracing each other in delight, both talking at about ninety miles an hour.
"I can't believe it, you were so fabulous!" Chloe said. "The show was absolutely amazing!"
"I can't believe you came! It's been forever! How are you?"
"I'm amazing. Really. But what about you? You're an actress! I about died when I say your picture in the paper!"
"I know! I still can't believe it myself. It's fantastic. What about you? What are you doing these days?"
Chloe smiled, shaking her head. "Later. Sufficient to say it's almost impossible to explain, but I'm good. Really good."
MJ smiled. "We definitely have to do coffee together or something. I just can't believe this," she squealed. "I had no idea you were in Metropolis, but I guess I should've known you'd never hang around Smallville for long."
Finally one of the men with MJ cleared his throat and MJ remembered there were other people in the room. "Oh god, right. Chloe, this is Peter Parker, my fiance. He's a photographer."
Chloe looked surprised, but shook the man's extended hand. "Congratulations, you two," she smiled. "It's great to meet you, Peter."
"And this," MJ continued, "is our friend Harry Osborn." The man she indicated grinned at Chloe and extended his hand. Chloe's stomach fluttered when their hands touched. He was handsome.
"Pleasure," Harry said.
Chloe nodded.
"So introduce me to your friends!" MJ said excitedly. Chloe turned to see her three companions hanging back awkwardly. She chuckled.
"Well of course, this is Lois," Chloe said.
Lois embraced MJ unceremoniously. "You wouldn't remember me. The last time I saw you, you and Chlo were in diapers." She grinned. "Good to see you turned out all right."
"This is Lois's fiance and my best friend Clark." Clark shook hands with everyone.
"And, of course, my friend and boss, Oliver, but I understand you two've met," Chloe said.
MJ nodded. "Nice to see you again," she smiled as Oliver shook Peter's hand. "Boss, huh?" She looked at Chloe who just smiled helplessly.
"You, too," he said warmly. "And you, Osborn. It's been a while, man," Oliver turned to Harry, grasping his hand.
Harry returned the handshake pleasantly. "You, too, Queen. I hear you merged with Luthorcorp? Impressive, man."
"Thanks. Yeah, it was a big move. But hey, I was really sorry to hear about your father last year. It was a real shame."
Harry's look darkened slightly. "Thanks," he said. Chloe realized whatever had happened to his father, the pain must still be fresh.
MJ looked at the boys. "Well I take it you two know each other, then," she grinned.
"Apparently," Chloe said, eyebrows up.
They both shrugged nonchalantly. "We run in similar circles," Harry said.
"Hey, does Peter remind you of someone?" Clark muttered to Lois.
Lois grinned. "Picture him in a bow tie and sweater vest."
Clark squinted at Peter. Then his eyes widened. "Oh."
"Looks like Chloe and MJ have a lot in common."
Two days later.
"MJ, I think one of your friends is Spiderman!" Chloe said breathlessly in the doorway of her friend's hotel suite.
MJ's eyes widened. "Get in here," she said, pulling her friend none too gently into the room. She shut the door. "What do you know?" she asked, and Chloe took it as confirmation.
