Verdict – Chapter 4

Chloe sat at her desk on now the main floor of the Daily Planet and typed away at the story for the following day's Planet issue. It wasn't one of her juiciest pieces, but that would come later in the week. Still, it would be hard to beat the piece that finally lowered the boom on what was left of the Luthorcorp Company.

"What were you thinking?"

"Good morning Chloe. How was your night Chloe. Mine was good." Chloe jested and rolled her eyes at her once best friend that she merely shared the newsroom with between his run in and outs.

Clark threw the morning edition down on the corner of her desk and stared at her. "You went to the mansion? After everything that he has done to us, to Lana, you went to his den. He's dangerous; you should know that more than anyone."

Chloe shook her head as she stopped typing knowing that she obviously was not going to get anything done without breaching the subject with him. Standing up, she walked over to the coffee stations and without purpose made Clark follow her. "I went to his place, yes. I saw that he had basically become the psychotic maniac that had obviously been under his skin since his last mental breakdown years ago. He didn't hurt me, just scared me a little. Besides, I got a front page exclusive about the REAL downfall of Lex Luthor and a story he finally couldn't kill. I made the call to the police. You should be congratulating me, not making a deal of it."

"He's still dangerous."

Chloe stopped and eyed Clark. Even in his older, more mature state he still only saw things in shades of black and white. And although she saw Lex's color slowly turning blacker than gray, the strange 'thank you' from him when he was arrested showed he either was playing one of his last cards or there was some hope. Still, her guard was up and it was better to keep an eye on the enemy from close by, at least in Lex's case.

Softening her voice as she sat back down at her desk, she looked over at Clark who had pulled up a chair next to her. "I know what he did to you, me, Lana, everyone in that town was and is horrible. But I would rather keep an eye on him now seeing the situation he's in. And he's my story."

"But he still has resources Chloe. He may be down but he's not out." Clark tried to remind her that he had once been cut off but that lasted only a few days.

Chloe held up her hand. "Yes, but I know for a fact that he is sitting on exactly $100000, and that will soon be an amount that disappears as well. Resources cost money whether its Lex Luthor paying or me. His attorney has already requested from his accountant the retainer fee for his trial with the IRS, which he will lose. His older accountant is going down with him but falling softer since he's putting it on Lex, saying it was reallocated to those special projects we all loved."

Clark gaped at the knowledge that Chloe had in her possession. He knew from her past investigations that she wasn't making anything up because she only wrote the truth. "Clark, close your mouth. I'm a big girl now."

Clark sighed as he tried once more to reason with the woman who had been his best friend. He wasn't quite sure what happened, but the wheels fell off the relationship around the time Lex went after Lana. He suspected his pining and brooding had pushed Chloe away, not into someone else's arms but just away. Getting up, he looked over his shoulder once more, "Just watch your back."

********

Lex sat in the one of many cells in the county prison alone. He had been there before but under much different circumstances. Minor incidents, traffic issues that simply ended when enough money was thrown at the right crooked cop. People could always be bought and sold.

Four days had passed and not one person that wasn't the press had asked to see him. It wasn't unexpected although he hoped that Chloe would come by at least once if for no other reason than to badger him about being behind bars.

He looked in the very faint light at the clothes he wore now. They had taken everything from him, including the picture and his mother's things. He thought of laughing thinking that the pants he wore and the shirt on his back were the only things he really owned anymore.

He lied down on the cot and stared up at the old walls of the building that dated from the 30's. You could hear the two officers on duty discussing the football game from earlier in the evening as the night wore on. Lex replayed the events in his mind and came to the conclusion that Chloe had called the cops. He hadn't expected any less. Regardless of her admission to him and subsequent ignoring of the statement, he knew she wasn't one to roll over anymore.

Still, he wondered what her real life was like after his firing her from the Daily Planet. He knew that even at the time of the wedding, Lana and Chloe were not the bosom buddies from high school. Lana, at the time, was still the innocent one and Chloe had been through enough to make her grow up and away from everyone.

She had even decided to give up on Clark. Good girl, he thought. Clark had brought her down from where she belonged. Now, she essentially worked alone, but Lex knew there were other people in her background that he couldn't put his finger on. She had become more resourceful since leaving the Planet as if his firing her made her more powerful. He wished he could take the credit.

Looking over at the small window, he realized that he had only dozed a couple of hours in between his analysis of the recent events with Chloe. He hadn't even scratched the surface, wondering if her sudden confession to him had been just to save his ass. He didn't care though. From the look she gave him when she retrieved him for the wedding, he knew something didn't quite sit well with her as far as Lana was concerned. Until that moment, he was sure Lana was the issue. Now he wasn't sure.

"Luthor, you have a hearing," the guard called as Lex stepped away from the door and held his hands out. There was no reason to fight this one. He had nothing to fight with, excluding his wit and intellect, which would probably not get him very far.

The guard led him into the small courtroom where he saw Chloe in the front row opposite from him in the small public area. She didn't smile, even blink in his direction. He watched as she made notes, probably on his dress and demeanor walking in. He stood in front of the judge and noticed his attorney walking in.

"I can't pay you the normal retainer," he whispered, hoping the rest of the courtroom wouldn't hear him. His attorney simply patted him on the shoulder and entered the automatic plea of not guilty.

Interrupting his attorney, he tapped him on the shoulder and whispered a few words to him. "No Lex." The judge watched the strange exchange he had never seen with Lex in front of him before. The man was usually so infallible and never spoke.

Chloe watched from the front row but not close enough, wishing she could hear what Lex could possibly be saying to his attorney. Nodding her head when she saw the attorney's expression, she covered her mouth knowing the hole Lex chose to dig himself further in.

"Not guilty. I believe my client is under duress and that makes it harder for him to make informed decisions." Lex rolled his eyes and sat down in the chair, completely unaware of the state's evidence that immediately started to pile up. The state had six hours worth of testimony from firefighters, police officers, and pictures. Lex had nothing but his attorney calling the shots.

Chloe watched as the judge disappeared into the chambers. Lex turned and glanced at her as she gulped and held her composure. Putting her head back down, she could still feel his gaze on her as she wrote about the case.

Standing up to meet the judge as he walked back in, the judge waved everyone to sit down and looked over what amounted to another stack of records that had not been previously disclosed.

"Seems that while we have been in session, the IRS seized the garage full of cars and the remainder of some very rare and priceless artifacts from a fire proof location in your home. The proceedings for the tax evasion will be in Metropolis but you need not be present. However, the ruling here cannot be affected by this news. The evidence is clear cut, with multiple evidences of vandalism and arson. The verdict is guilty and I will rule in two weeks. You will remain in county until that day." The gavel fell and Chloe eyed Lex turning toward her again.

She was all he had now. He hoped she at least still had the heart to visit him in prison. He smiled halfway at her as he was led back out of the courtroom and to the jail, this time in a simple gray jumpsuit.

Chloe sat speechless in the front seat as the other reporters noisily left the courtroom, talking on the their cellphones. She made her last couple of notes and wondered what kind of verdict was possible. He was Lex Luthor. Arson carried a stiff penalty, and she guessed the judge would give him the maximum sentence. Grabbing up her bag, she noticed his attorney looking at her as she disappeared out of the courtroom.

**********

Chloe sat behind her desk and smiled at the piece of work that graced her screen that afternoon. 'Lex Luthor To Burn' she read for her title wondering if had been too dramatic for the Daily Planet's tastes. She simply wanted a play on words for the arson verdict.

"Burns, huh?" Jimmy reached over and kissed her on the cheek before sitting at the chair by her desk. "Seems like a long time and coming for you to see him finally get exactly what he deserved." He stopped and noticed the peculiar look on her face. "You okay?"

She wasn't. She hadn't quite put all the pieces together yet, but she knew that she had to do it. Having him sit in that state penitentiary was not her idea of retribution. She wanted something that he and his father had over her family for the longest time. She smiled shortly at Jimmy and reached over and brushed her lips to his. "I'm fine. It's just a little overwhelming. All this time and this is all it took."

She stood up and Jimmy followed her into the copy room to pick up the hard copy of the final draft. "Dinner tonight?"

"I would love to, but I have some other angles I need to set up for this story." Chloe kissed him again and walked into the editor's office. "Here's the story. There's more to come but that'll keep the readers interested until the sentencing."

The editor, Perry White, took over after the latest buyout snatched the paper from Chloe's hand and skimmed over it. "I see you conveniently left out the fact you called the police to cover your ass for harboring a criminal. Although, I'm sure the police would not have charged you. You are going to stay on top of it? You seem to be intimately involved with this man."

Chloe tried to ignore the flush feeling on her cheeks at her new boss's suggestion of intimacy. Nothing had ever really happened, nothing she could qualify as intimate. "Certainly not in the way you might think. Anyway, I know him better than most."

"Mr. Luthor, who has very fine tastes," White joked as he ran his hand along the edges of the chair that Lex used to sit in. "Did not have quite the same sleaze investigating for him as I do. Now, I want to know what makes him tick now. His plans. You up to interviewing; he won't talk for anyone else."

Chloe halfway smiled and rolled her eyes. "An interview. I was going to hold off until the sentencing and catch him in the true environment, but if you want me to."

"Yes, for Friday's edition. We need to bring up our numbers for Friday, and that will do the ticket. Now off." Perry waved her to the door.

Chloe sat down at her desk and eyed the newsroom, not seeing Jimmy in her sight. It was going to be an explanation of epic proportions for both he and Clark, especially Clark. She wasn't quite sure if Jimmy would even speak to her after she told them what was being planned.

***********

Friday came around and she stared at the small tablet in front of her in the musty room with only one other chair. The guard left her there to obtain Lex. She watched as the man that used to keep her guarded and then keep her on her guard walked differently as he stared at her through the bars as he passed.

Sitting down at the small table across from her, the guard waved to her to call when she was done. Chloe met his eyes in determination but couldn't speak. "I asked for you three days ago," Lex calmly stated as he stared at her across fidgeting with the pen in her hand.

She glared across the table at him. "There are other stories to write in this city Lex. I had things to do."

"I've wanted to see you."

Chloe swallowed. "Why?" She knew though.

Lex folded his hands in front of him and lifted the one side of his mouth as in some kind of simple smile. "You deserve the exclusive. You were the one that put me here."

"You realize you are looking at prison time." Chloe tried not to break the intense stare that Lex gave her. It was f he was trying to see past the cold exterior of her reporter's face to find the words she had screamed at him days ago.

Lex nodded and sighed as if he was ready to take what he was handed. "I know; five years possible since I put you in harm's way." Chloe watched his chin slightly quiver like she hadn't seen since he talked about Lana's leaving. "Of course, you gave me no choice barging in."

Chloe shook her head in disbelief. He was actually trying to make the situation all her fault. "Dying would have been too easy for you. Now, how about the interview." Chloe flipped the tablet and began the run down of questions that Perry had given her in case she forgot what she was supposed to be asking about.

Chloe glanced over some the questions and rolled her eyes. Huffing, Lex watched the obvious disgust. "Not exactly the kind of interview you wanted to do? Let me think, Perry White wants the basics, and you want the real reason that everything happened the way it did." Lex leaned further in and shook his head as he tried to reach for her hand across the table. "I think Mr. White should be interviewing you."

Chloe leaned further back in the seat and stared across the small table. She could feel her flesh crawl partially from the obvious disgust with how well Lex knew her and the other for the searing look he gave her. Man of incredible flesh and a devil's soul. Gaining her quick composure, she stared into his eyes and broke a smirk, "Your attorney just absconded with half of the remaining money in your personal account, leaving you little or nothing. Have a response?"

Lex sat up met her obvious stance with his own. "He is simply gaining his retainer for the IRS trial…"

"That you are bound to lose. How do you feel about seeing your personal accountant for the last seven years is testifying against you?" Lex hesitated and Chloe took the break in his composure as a weakness and continued. "Perhaps, could this accountant been placed in charge of your personal accounts as a plant for your father so many years ago?"

Lex balanced himself on his hands and squinted in Chloe's direction as if he was counting the years. "Interesting thought, but as much as my father and I didn't see eye to eye, I can hardly expect that he would have planned a setup like this. Besides my personal account had very little to do with business deals."

"No, just the money your mother left you when she died," Chloe quickly added in.

Lex stopped and stood up from the table and paced in front of Chloe. She knew that had hit a nerve. Staring at the floor, he nodded, "He wouldn't be so underhanded to steal slowly from a teenager."

"You weren't a teenager. You were on the board and this is the same man that killed your grandparents, or did some of those beatings and shootings mar that memory again?" Lex turned to her last words hearing the bite in her words. She was obviously dredging up the past to remind him how he had changed.

Turning to her, he moved around to her side of the table as he heard the outside door unlatch and a guard moved in. Chloe looked around Lex's body moving closer to her and eyed the guard. "He's ok," she reassured the guard as the man stepped back behind the door.

Standing up in front of him, her heels still brought her just lower than his eyes. "Hit a nerve?" she leaned on one foot, proud of herself.

Lex leaned in and brushed her hair out of the way, "Not the one you were hoping for," he whispered and then watched her eyes as her stance stiffened with his fingers moving slightly down her arm before he moved away. Looking back in her direction, he shook his head. "You have an interesting theory though. Maybe you should investigate where Lana went, seeing as you still claim to have no idea. That could benefit both of us."

"Ten million dollars is a lot of money for a little Smallville cheerleader to walk away with," Chloe smarted back as she sat back down and pointed at the chair in from of her. "I have to leave in exactly ten minutes, and would like a few more points than a classified ad to write about."

Lex sat as she not so subtly asked him to. "So, upon your release from prison, assuming the additional time in the white collar prison of I'm sure your choice, what are your plans?"

Chloe smirked with almost a smile on her face as Lex leaned back in the chair and threw his feet up on the table. She couldn't tell if his demeanor was to keep her on edge or that he truly wondered where he would be at. Crossing his arms, he looked back at her and cocked his head to the side. "I know I'll come back here to Metropolis. Pursue the money that rightfully belongs to me and start over." Throwing his hands out, a smiled appeared on his face. "Luthors persevere."

Chloe put her pad away and stood up, "Spoken like a true Luthor. I'm sure your father would be dutifully proud." She paused before the door to the cell popped open. "Still wouldn't say that those are the words that you wanted to hear though."

"Chloe," he calmly questioned her as she headed out the main door. Turning he had stood up but was held back by the guard from approaching the bars. "I already heard them from you."

"See you in court Lex," Chloe dropped without another facial expression. Lex watched the door behind her close and sighed and pinched his nose, realizing she wasn't the little teenager he could scare anymore.

*********

Chloe walked around the apartment in the Talon and eyed the remodeling that she was having done during the week while she was in Metropolis covering the trial. She had given in and stayed with Jimmy, not quite ready to have the conversation with him. Turning, she smiled at the slender gentleman that strolled in wearing the light leather jacket and smiling.

"This is really what you want?" the man asked as he looked around the room and checked out the new furnishings. Sitting down on the couch, he hopped a little. "Looking to cause a back ache?"

Chloe giggled as she pointed another worker in the direction of the bathroom and eyed the shower's new piping. Everything had to be gone over with a fine tooth comb. Walking back into the kitchen, she shook her head. "You know, you look kind of jealous."

The man turned around, pulling one of the drawers open. "Jealous. I know your tastes have always been a little on the wild side, but some of this ridiculous," he laughed as he pulled out the stack of heavy plastic plates.

"Put it back," Chloe argued playfully as she grabbed the handful back out of his hand and replaced them. "Is the outside set up?"

"Yeah, the mainframe is placed on the roof and the line into the apartment is set." He hesitated and Chloe saw the look on his face. Even knowing the man only the last couple of years, she had learned to trust him almost more than Clark. Clark was still swimming in between the Lana pond and destiny. Right and wrong seemed to only revolve around whether it was good for him or not.

"Don't give me that look. I get it from Clark."

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders as she gave another set of orders to the workers bringing in more boxes. Smiling up at him, she slipped out of his arm and opened the boxes. "Good, in there." She commented as she pointed to the far end of the place.

"Come on, I need to check on how the workers are doing downstairs." She walked down the stairs, feeling him right behind her. She looked over her shoulder at his awe of the transformation of the Talon coffeeshop into a sandwich and juice bar was going.

"Looks great. And I take it you've got plans."

Chloe smiled almost devilishly, "Yeah. Hey are you going to be there on Monday?"

Walking out the front door with her, she signed a couple sheets that another foreman handed her and looked back at the man leaning against the sleek car. "No," he nodded. "I think I'll just wait for your impressions in the Planet." Leaning forward, the man hugged her and smiled. "Call me if you run into any problems."

Chloe smiled and watched the man drive off in the car and then got in her car, leaving for Metropolis to try to explain herself to Jimmy, the one conversation she was trying desperately to avoid.

**********

"You what?" Jimmy pushed her out of the kiss she was laying on his neck and stared at his fiancée as if she had lost her mind. Getting up from the couch in his little apartment, he nodded his head and backed away. "Are you sure you're not possessed by some meteor freak that you picked up while remodeling the walls?"

Chloe rolled her eyes. She couldn't really take too much of his childish behavior and didn't understand the situation. Closing her eyes and rubbing her head, she tried to think of the words that could explain her thinking. "I want control over the situation. You weren't there my whole childhood and I don't expect for you to understand. But I'm not going to argue or fight with you over this."

Jimmy watched her pick up her purse and head for the door. Stopping short of cutting off her path, he put his hand out on her arm. "Are you being careful? Do you understand the complications of this? Does Clark know?"

Chloe pulled out of his hand and glared at the man that she was still, for the moment, engaged to. She knew that Jimmy was in for the duration after all the other times he had forgiven her; she had him until…she couldn't think about it right then. Rolling her eyes, she pulled the door open, "Yes, yes, and no." Without hearing the last bit of what Jimmy was asking, she watched him stand in his apartment doorway as the elevator doors closed.

********

"All rise," Chloe could barely hear the judge speak, her heartbeat thumping loudly in her ears. She sat at the far side of the courtroom from the yet again business dressed Lex Luthor stayed standing with his attorney.

Lex could feel the heat from her eyes on his back. Resisting the urge to turn, he glanced out of the corner of his eye to see her still staring expressionless. He slightly smirked to himself thinking her glazed emotionless look almost matched the one he had used with her every time they met the last couple of years.

"Counsels, approach the bench please." Lex watched as his attorney walked away from the table and then Lex glanced back at Chloe as she raised her chin to him. Even with the power play in her face, the slight upturn of her lip looked hopeful.

He knew the interview had gone completely wrong and read the result in the Daily Planet. He might as well had committed murder in the way she painted him to the international press. Cold, heartless, selfish…those had been the words that reiterated in his mind when he laid in the dark. Prison time only meant he would have even more time to think about her and his fuck ups.

"There's been a deal made," his attorney leaned over and whispered into Lex's ear as Lex looked at his attorney questioningly. "It's a very good deal considering the number of times you have been in legal troubles." Lex stood up for the judge, still not sure what his attorney had agreed to. He glanced once more back to Chloe, who pulled something out of her satchel and read over it as the judge began.

"Mr. Luthor, would you like to address the court before the sentence is read?"

Chloe eyed Lex's body movement as he answered, seeing nothing but stiffness and his steel voice unwavering. "Ladies and gentlemen. I apologize for the inconvenience that this has caused the courts and the public. I was reckless and not in control as I should have been."

Chloe closed her eyes as he finished the brief statement that would be printed in papers, including the Daily Planet. She sat completely still as the person behind her scribbled faster than a normal person. Afterwards, he leaned over in her direction, "Was that an apology?"

Glaring at Clark, she rolled her eyes and looked back in Lex's direction as the legal jargon of the sentence was read first before the judge stopped.

"When this deal was brought to me soon after the verdict, I first was not going to consider it. After overseeing the quick yet extensive developments involved, I reconsidered with some minor adjustments. Be forewarned that any deviation from the sentence details laid out will immediately qualify you for the original sentence.

Therefore, for the sentence of arson of personal property, you are hereby sentenced to serve a term of no less than one year under house detention at 220 Main Street, Smallville Kansas, 35409. There you will be bound by a GPS ankle bracelet. You will be restricted to within 100 feet of the grounds 24 hours a day except for with an accompanying officer. You will report to the household landline phone during the random household checks. You may not possess alcohol, drugs, including caffeine, a cell phone, a computer, television, or fax machine.

You will maintain a job in the shop below the apartment and will work during the hours of 6 AM until 6 PM. Your pay will be handled through the state as part of your court debt. You will be accompanied by an officer to anger management classes on Monday, Alcoholics Anonymous on Tuesday, and to see a counselor on Tuesdays and Thursdays. A short list of visitors has been approved to the court and those visits will be allowed on Wednesdays and Fridays between 6 PM and 7 PM.

On weekends, you will be accompanied by an officer to a prison work site for at least 8 hours of the day. You will have unscheduled visits to check on your progress at least twice a week by an assignee of the court. This sentence can be extended or cancelled based on the verdict of your future court appearances.

Do you understand the sentence as I have read it?"

Lex stood stunned. Glancing back in Chloe's direction, she cocked her head to the side and said nothing. Turning back to the judge, he nodded, still stunned. "Yes, your honor."

"What did you do Chloe?" she heard behind her as Clark could barely get the words out of his mouth.

New Introductions – Chapter 5

Lex watched as the rows of corn flew past in the vehicle that had only one small window. He silently wondered if the officer across the way from him was going to be the one assigned to him. The man was incredibly large, in a way that was frightening to even Lex. He looked familiar though.

"Do I know you?"

The large man in uniform looked over at him and gruffed. "Your thing replaced me in the Streetfight two years ago. So, my career went down the drain and I went to the police academy." The man folded his arms over his large body and leaned back against the side of the truck wall. "I'm your officer, Officer Bates," he slightly smirked as an almost evil chuckle took over.

Lex nodded and then continued to silently look out the window. He was starting to put the pieces together as far as his punishment and had a pretty good feeling who had worked with the judge on it. He wondered if the two years in prison in Metropolis would have been easier, but he wouldn't give her the satisfaction of winning by asking for it.

"We're here," Bates smiled across at Lex, still handcuffed and leg braced as if they should be concerned he could take down the officer across from him. Hopping out of the back of the vehicle, he groaned at sight of the alley behind the Talon. Scenes from events he had been part of, good and bad, flooded his memories to the point he couldn't think straight.

Lex looked down to see that Bates was hooking another object, not quite as heavy around his ankle. "It's waterproof and tamperproof," Bates commented as he looked down at the man while taking his handcuffs off. "You can only go as far as that garbage dumpster or it'll send a signal that you've taken off." Bates leaned forward and slowly continued, "And then I have to go after you."

The last look Bates gave him about his running away sealed his fate. Lex pulled his pant leg up and noticed the small engraved initials on the side of the company logo. Nodding his head, he wondered about the irony of it all.

"This way," Bates led him in the back door of the Talon, which looked nothing like it used to. Lex eyed the whole place seeing that the entire interior had been calmed to what would be compared to a 'green' sandwich shop. He looked at the flyer on one of the posts and raised an eyebrow. She closed the old theater finally. There was a perfectly good one on the other side of town, but Lana tried to run the other one for years.

Seeing Bates pointing to a small table, Lex sat down across from the officer and continued eyeing the changes that had occurred in just a few weeks. Shaking his head, he couldn't place except for Chloe's dad where she could possibly get the ability to make changes like those.

"Good morning Mr. Luthor." The man put his hand out and shook Lex's before sitting down in one of the other chairs. "I'm Mark. I'm the manager and your boss." The man stopped speaking, looking slightly nervous at Lex.

Lex watched his lips twitch, and questioned, "Let me guess, I did something to you too." The comment was stated acidly as if he could still rattle someone without having any power.

"#1127 from Chicago 33.1. You remember me or did you have so many of us you couldn't keep us straight?"

"Mark, that's enough." All three men looked up as the front door slammed behind a well dressed and very determined Chloe Sullivan. Walking over, she stopped in front of Lex and held out her hand. "Your ride go ok?"

Lex was beside himself trying to understand why other than owning the building she was there. "Fine. You seem to have dug up everyone that could possibly hate me."

Chloe sat in the last remaining chair, leaning forward and crossing her hands on the table with a devil's smile on her face. "I haven't even scratched the surface, but a lot of that will depend on you." Her face was expressionless; she had learned that all too well from battling with him and then before with his father. Nodding in silent acknowledgement, Lex remained quiet. "Mark, you will treat him with the same respect as other employees. I will not have you badgering him."

After Chloe put the manager in his place, Mark continued explaining what Lex would be involved with until the media circus calmed down. Lex silently thanked Chloe that she had the foresight to not let Mark put him on display right off the bat. Then again, Chloe had always treated him differently, respectfully, and he blindly had thrown it away.

***********

"So, now that you have the kitchen down, how about checking out your place?" Chloe squeezed the very large arm of Bates and smiled, "He'll be ok." Bates stood at the bottom of the stairs and waited as Mark disappeared into the kitchen. Chloe opened the door and handed Lex the one key he was allowed to now have.

Flipping on the light, he sighed and then gave Chloe a surprising glance. She couldn't help let a small smile break on her face. "Chloe."

"I know it's not the pieces from your place, but it's as close as I could do on a budget." She watched as he eyed the painting job of cool blues and grays and then heard his chuckle at the plastic decorations and dishes. "They didn't allow any glass, except the windows. I tried to convince them you wouldn't try to kill yourself again, but they didn't bite."

He disappeared around the new wall that separated the living room from the bedroom better. Chloe sat on the couch and bounced a couple of time, now understanding what Oliver had been talking about when he had been there. She shook her head and probably assumed the that books on the shelf would be read at the kitchen table.

"And I was thinking this morning about asking to go back to prison." He came back into the main room, dressed very similar to his look when Chloe first met him. "Do I want to know how you afforded all of this?"

Chloe eyed him from the couch and just ignored the question. "You know your way around here. Let's go downstairs." Lex followed behind her and passed Bates once again before disappearing into the back that used to be the theater. Opening one door, Chloe walked in. "Here's your and the Talon's laundry room. Across the way through that door is your workout room. I asked for you to have something to do, so there are plenty of psycho babble books upstairs."

The two walked further back into the now empty theater and Lex looked around. "It's going to be a new gym that enters from the side. It still needs work though." Chloe reached up to turn the light off as she felt Lex's hand on hers. The slight brush ignited a feeling that once never bothered her, one that now made her nervous since so many things had changed.

Looking over her shoulder, she swallowed hoping he wouldn't notice the motion. "Chloe, you could have just let me go to jail," he softly stated into the now dark room. He couldn't exactly tell where she was from the small bit of light that came from under the door she had closed. Taking another step, he felt her against him. "Why did you do it? All of it."

She jumped slightly as his hand running along her arm as his warmth moved closer to her. "This wasn't the way it was supposed to happen. You were supposed to just come with me. You fucked it up."

Lex felt her leg up against his and knew that even in the dark he had her cornered. Running his hand along her shoulder, he felt her slightly shudder and felt her breath hitch. With the dark, her reactions were more telling. "I'm sorry. What was the real plan Chloe? You honestly thought that I would be able to just pick up and do what I'm forced to do now."

"I just wanted…"

Lex leaned in closer, feeling the heat of her cheek against the palm of his hand. "Did you really say that at the mansion just to get me to leave?" he whispered into her ear as she closed her eyes. Even with no power, no money, he still had her.

Her voice was gone; she opened her mouth and couldn't picture any words coming out. He couldn't see her jaw moving to speak but knew he could feel it in his hands. He had been damn confusing to her senses and now she knew that she couldn't be alone with him and was in over her head.

Lex could feel her nervousness just beneath his fingers. He imagined her face flushed unlike he had seen in years. He wondered if Jimmy could honestly make her feel the same way but seriously doubted it. As much as he wanted to taunt her for having a pseudo affair with him, bringing Jimmy into the equation right now would ruin the moment. He ran his hand back behind her head, entwining his fingers into her hair.

"Lex, stop," she squeaked out before pulling her body out from his, feeling his lips just graze her forehead instead of her lips as she thought he was hoping for. Flipping the lights back on, she shielded her eyes and headed toward the door. Lex turned in her direction and saw the color of her cheeks starting to already fade. She was complicated and he couldn't get her to admit anything again. "We need to get back and get you busy. I will see you later this week."

Lex nodded as if nothing happened and held the door open for her before turning off the light. Following her back into the Talon, he leaned against the counter as Mark handed her a set of invoices. He tried to eye the papers over her shoulder but backed up as she turned and glared at him. "Mark, you have something for Lex to do before opening?"

Mark handed a bucket of warm water and a towel in it to the man dressed in the clothes that he no doubt knew Chloe picked out for him. "Yeah, wipe the tables down once more. They had to do some more drilling for some electrical last night and there's dust everywhere. Then there's a broom in the backroom where you can get the floors."

Lex looked dumbfounded in Chloe's direction as he took the bucket ungraciously from Mark. She continued flipping through the invoices and checking over figures. Looking up at Lex, she signaled for him to get started. "What are you waiting on?"

"I'll see you on Wednesday?"

"Depends on when your official visits by the court ordered officer are supposed to occur." Lex raised an eyebrow. "I'm the court appointed person. See you soon." Chloe picked up her purse from the counter and whispered a few more things to Mark before slipping out the side entrance. Lex saw her pull away from the front of the building and huffed as Mark watched. Looking up, he noticed the evil eye and proceeded to squeeze the soapy wet rag out before starting on the first table. It was going to be a long year.

************

"Hello?" Chloe giggled at the slight grogginess on the other end of the line. She looked at the clock in her own apartment, 3:30 AM.

"Good morning. Just checking in."

Lex knew immediately who it was; she had called almost 5 hours ago as he was reading one of the Chicken Soup books that graced his new place. He was in rehab hell. "Chloe, is this really necessary?"

"It's court ordered and I'm only doing it for a couple of days until the official caller has you put into her schedule. Her voice isn't quite as nice as mine though."

"How many more calls before sun up?"

Chloe looked at her log that she was required to keep. "I can't say, but if I call the Talon for you, you will have to answer."

"Done. Can I go back to bed now?"

"Lex, of all the people in the world, I thought you would revel in the idea of me giving you a wake up call. I know for a fact that you slept very little when working."

Lex rolled back over in the bed with the cordless phone still pressed to his ear. "Yes, but I don't have to work those hours now and when you left I found out what work was. Your friend Mark showed me the other side of the business. I mopped the entire damn place, changed lightbulbs, and finished painting what Mark explained was going to be the new Yoga classroom in what was the flower shop. Yoga?"

Chloe couldn't help but softly chuckle at the rant that the almighty Lex Luthor was on, and it was only the first day. "Goodnight Lex. You have what – 2 hours until you have to be at work?" Chloe clicked the phone closed and glanced over at the groaning man in the bed. He was going to be a problem in the mix. Putting the phone down, she crawled back into bed, feeling Jimmy's arm wrap around her as she turned away from him.

********

Two weeks had passed since Lex had first started his time. He was now getting four to six calls at random hours from some woman that sounded like she could break him in half. That was in addition to the brief, even without speaking, visits that Chloe made to make sure that everything was still going as scheduled.

The Talon Green Sandwich Shop had opened the weekend before to rave reviews even from the Daily Planet. The press when Lex first started working there had scrambled in the first few days to catch a glimpse of the billionaire as a work stiff just to leave with a satisfied appetite and a good word of mouth. Lex was safely hidden in the back, earning his keep.

He stared at the already piled high set of dishes from the morning shift. Gone were the muffins and scones and pastries of the coffee house, now replaced with health food that seemed to be actually doing well. He admitted the omelets that one of the cooks made were better than the mansion's cook. The business, he had to hand it to Chloe, was actually going to make it. She had impressed him once again.

Personally, Lex hadn't been completely disheartened by the new arrangement. The first few days he could barely reach for a glass after working so physically getting the place ready to open. Now, the laborers were working on the gym and he could just stay in the kitchen, for now. Shaking his head, though, he eyed the shirt he had decided to wear today. The one that used to be white.

He had now been through two weeks of therapy. The twelve steps for AA seemed to be no problem since he was nowhere near any alcohol now. Strangely, he only missed it when he couldn't sleep. That was where the book came in. He had read every book on the first bookshelf and was now working on the books about solving the pain in your soul or some crap. It went well with the two hour sessions with the therapist, at least this one wasn't drugging him.

As he lowered the first set of dishes into the sink now filled up to his elbows in water, he still considered what Chloe's whole intention was. He had noticed small details about the Talon in the last few weeks and knew there was no way her father's little bit of money would cover the expenses. He knew some of his expenses were carried by the state, but didn't think Armani Exchange was one of the allowed State of Kansas vendors for prisoners. There was more to his incarceration there.

Then there was Chloe. Since their almost heated passionate moment two weeks ago, she seemed to go through the motions of seeing him, checking in on him, and then leaving without even a word. But there was a look of sadness that invaded her face when he saw her leave the Talon most days she came by. He had to get her to talk to him, maybe try a new strategy because the overbearing, get what I want Lex Luthor didn't exactly scare anyone anymore.

********

Chloe was running late. She stood in front of the door and waited after she knocked a third time. Talking to herself, she was simply going to check he was in the room, not that the ankle bracelet did that for her, and then leave. No complications, and she could be home by bed time, with Jimmy.

"Coming!" She heard from the other side of the door and then heard the click from several of the locks. She mildly laughed thinking that one little apartment was more secure than the mansion had been. Lex wondered who Bates had let up the stairs as he opened the door. "Can I…Chloe." He leaned against the door slightly, lifting one side of his mouth like a half hearted smile.

"Hi, I just had to check and see if you were here. I was running late and didn't catch you at work." She could smell something in the apartment as her eyes widened. "Are you burning something else?"

Lex turned around and left the door open. "Fuck." He turned down the fire on the stove and pulled the pan off the stove. "That is the second time I've done that. I can't get it to work like the cook downstairs did."

"Nice," Chloe muttered under her breath. She stayed in the doorway and silently argued with herself about entering the apartment at all. The last time they had been alone, things had gone very wrong. Realizing that she really didn't want to leave right away, she heaved a sigh and closed the door as she entered the apartment. "You know cooking is one of those basics."

"And I might get to learn to do it if your little henchman didn't have me mopping floors and washing dishes all the time." Chloe watched the steam rise up from the sink as Lex dumped the pan in and reached for the water handle.

Chloe came around the edge of the counter and pushed his hand away as she lifted the pan back out of the sink. Lex threw up his hands and stayed out of the way. "I thought you would have appreciated the gesture of not making you serve the journalists that want to write about the great Lex Luthor."

Lex huffed at her backhanded comment. ""So instead of being the starring attraction in the center ring, I'm being kept as the sideshow for your private enjoyment. How wonderful for me." He crossed his arms and leaned against the counter as Chloe eyeballed him.

She was there to check that he was indeed there and that was it. Her visits were to be official and short. The fact of the matter was that she always made these during his working hours and never had to be alone with him, just check he was still there. Tonight presented a problem she hoped to avoid.

Not that she couldn't keep her wits about her; she was just not interested in a confrontation or argument tonight. She pulled a bowl out of the cabinet and dumped the partially burned entrée into it. "Nice shirt; I didn't think you were into pink after…"

"Funny. Those brand new maroon towels made five shirts this color." He paused and watched as she silently handed him another bowl and a bag of salad out of the refrigerator. "So how is the article on the new Lex Luthor going?"

Chloe's eyes shot up at him standing next to her in the kitchen as she tried to salvage what was left of what she guessed was chicken alfredo. "I'm not discussing it."

Lex stopped and turned in her direction wielding a spoon. "Why the hell not? I'm right here. I could still say no to that interview you've been trying to get but why. You're going to write what you damn well please anyway."

Chloe walked around and practically dropped the bowl of pasta on the table before going for some of the plastic dishes where she at least could eat and get out. "Lex, when are going to figure out that your incarceration is not my way of becoming famous. I'm not using you even though you got really good at doing that to others. Now, I usually get a meal from Mark before I leave; I couldn't tonight because I was running late. So, I'm going to either salvage what you have here for the two of us or leave and be hungry after the three hour drive home."

Lex didn't respond. Part of what she said was true he guessed. Still, the Talon felt like a big cage that he was subjected to. Deciding that the slight circles under her eyes and her icy tone was a hint that dinner could be on the table or in his lap before she left, he decided to drop his inquisition. He watched every step she made around the kitchen, noticing she knew where everything was. "Is the place set up like you left it?"

"The kitchen is, minus the real dishes." She was short and to the point. She didn't really feel like having a full blown conversation with him even if she was staying for dinner. On the other hand, Lex had guessed right about Perry was breathing down her neck for an update on her lifestyle piece on Lex.

"Can you gently turn the oven on where we can make some garlic bread. Spices are in the cabinet." Chloe took the items from him and quietly prepared the rest of dinner as he finished mixing a salad. It was a strange feeling standing next to him in what a few weeks ago was her kitchen, and they were making dinner together.

Sitting down at the table, she nervously pushed the food around before taking a bite. It wasn't half bad even burnt she thought. She knew Lex was watching her reaction to the food and saw his crooked smile as she nodded in approval. "Ok?"

"Good. A little dry. You'll get better."

The two ate in what amounted to complete silence. Chloe watched Lex intently trying to recreate a picture of a confident man in front of her. Gone was the wine at dinner replaced by some kind of green tea the therapist gave him to help him sleep at night. After the last few weeks, she wondered if she should ask to have some.

Chloe wanted him to be different. That was the ultimate goal for all the people involved. Luthor caged like a carnival act wasn't the reason for his being there, no matter what he apparently thought. But she couldn't make him believe it, he'd have to come to it or not on his own.

As if he was reading her mind, he placed his fork on his plate and looked up at her as she finished at the same pace he did. "Two weeks have passed. Would you like to hear about my exploits with the vacuum cleaner? It could add color to your piece."

"I'm curious," Chloe casually, slightly amused at the strange peace offering.

"I understood the vacuuming part, but the changing of the bag was," he paused, " something new. It went everywhere when I pulled on the bag. No one told me to just slip the little seal of the plastic piping. I went through practically another bag vacuuming up what had flown through the air after the accident. Then another couple of hours dusting." Chloe chuckled at the little story and then the room fell silent again. It was strange; they used to talk to each other for hours without recourse and now could barely say two words without throwing accusations. "How's Jimmy?"

Chloe nodded her head and rolled her eyes. "Fine." She looked in his direction and questioned the look on his face. Was he actually seriously holding out the strange olive branch with Jimmy's name on it? Thinking it wouldn't hurt to make conversation, she appeased him. "He's good. He got a couple of his pictures printed on the front page last week of the train crash."

Chloe noticed the small quirk in Lex's lip. "I saw them. They were good but he could have used a polarized filter over the lens in that light; cut out the glare."

Chloe stared at Lex in shock. This was the man that until a few days before his world came crashing down was threatening Jimmy. She saw a strange glint in his eyes that made her uneasy. Pushing her almost still full plate away, she realized her hunger was second to her nervous stomach. He was definitely up to something.

"I guess I'll be going. I may make it home in time for bed." Chloe pushed back her chair just to find Lex right behind it holding it out for her. Holding her jacket in the other hand, she smiled limply at his effort to be a gentleman. "Is this how it started?"

"What do you mean?"

"With Lana. The being like a gentleman because it worked with her. It's an act." Chloe turned and looked over at Lex as he tossed the dishes in the sink and started the water. She watched him push his sleeves up and then stare at her.

"I wasn't raised a buffoon."

"Well, I'm not going to ask why you picked her because I know the song and dance and frankly it's past. But it isn't working on me. I was and never will be Lana or anyone like that for that matter." Chloe could feel her chest tighten as the adrenaline in her system was getting out of control.

Lex moved around the counter and toward her as Chloe backed up to the door. She was not going to be cornered. Putting out her hand, he stopped in the middle of the small living room. "No you never were. Besides, I was simply being polite to you just now. And after our unexplainable falling out…"

"When I came back to life from being blown to high hell and you ignored me you mean. And when did you decide to be polite to me?"

"Because tonight I thought we were having a decent evening." Lex moved a little closer to her, taking a deep breath and trying to lower his voice. "And as for ignoring you, I didn't see any reason to make the effort. You never gave me the time of day after that."

Chloe just wanted the conversation to end. She would not let him rile her up like the night at the mansion. Her mouth, though, wanted to finish things. "So, instead you looked down on me and basically told me that my attitude was the reason why I never had a boyfriend." Lex's face went expressionless before he raised his chin to her as she relived his moments before he and Lana became an item. "Yeah, I know you remember."

"Chloe," he whispered.

Chloe put up one hand and cut him off. "No, save it for when you actually mean it." She pulled the door open and stopped at hearing her name again.

The night was not ending the way he had hoped. She wasn't budging, so he went for broke. "Chloe, why did you arrange all of this? Where is all the money for this coming from?" He stood still with his partially wet hands in his somewhat designer pant pockets.

Chloe turned and looked at him, almost sad. He needed to learn on his own. "Good night Lex." She lowered her head as she slipped out the door. Hearing the door crack open again as she descended the stairs, Bates looked back in Lex's direction before walking Chloe out to her car.

*************

"Do you think he'll ever figure out the purpose of this? Figure out why?" The voice on the other end of the phone was obviously concerned for her.

Chloe shook her head as she kept her eyes on the road. She was only a few minutes outside Metropolis now and incredibly late for her nightcap with Jimmy. "He acts as if I'm going to roll over and tell him everything I know."

"If you can't handle the strain, we can put him back in prison."

"It's not that. He hasn't done anything wrong yet to warrant it. Besides, now he would fight the reassignment." She heard the heavy voice on the other line sigh.

"Let me know if you ever need to give this up. It's hard weaving a web this long. We could easily try the other option."

Chloe shuddered at the voice's suggestion. Even with the strangely placed new found understanding between the two, her stomach churned remembering what he was still capable of, what he was apparently still capable of, albeit for different reasons. "I refuse to see him like that again. You didn't see him the way we saw him after what you did to him. You were a different person then. That wasn't Lex then; just his body."

"Similar to now?" The man questioned before sighing again knowing he was upsetting her. "We will continue on this track then."

"Goodnight," Chloe sighed.

"Goodnight Ms. Sullivan."

The Billionaire Bus Boy – Chapter 6

Lex looked at the line of the clean dishes he had carefully stacked in the kitchen ready for the doors to open. He was there an hour earlier than he was required. He couldn't sleep since the dinner he had with Chloe a couple of nights previous. He hadn't seen her reappear at the Talon since that evening and was afraid that she may have handed all her power over to the courts to handle to avoid him.

Instead, he found himself rearranging the kitchen the way that the cook had asked Mark to allow him to do a week earlier. It was simple really; placement of the utensils and dishes made much more sense now for the cook to reach without strain or wasting time. It was a simple move from the cook's perspective but Lex saw the bigger picture. Faster service, even by a few seconds, added up to more people moved in and out of the place equaling more profit. Not that he would see any at his hourly wage. The term gave him shivers.

He turned toward the back door opening and watched Mark walk into the office and immediately throw down the bundle in his hand before looking through the glass of the office and eyeing Lex's strange expression. Walking out of the office, Mark eyed the rearrangement of the kitchen.

"I guess Mario talked to you too. I didn't see why taking half a morning to rearrange made any difference. You aren't getting overtime for this." Mark shoved his hands in his pockets and stared at Lex.

He realized that Lex now was going to at least try to live in decent harmony, more like quiet servitude, for his time in the building. He had been wary when Chloe had first plucked him from his start up restaurant in Chicago after his six months of required therapy with was Isis was complete. He remembered every detail of his incarceration in Lex's prison camp.

Hours Mark spent doing strange experiments as men bigger and tougher than he was even with his abilities stood over him with tasers and sleep serums. The serums had been the worst; the hangover from them made you hope your head exploded before the next round. He had lost a fourth of his body weight in the hole Luthor had him.

Chloe, though, reassured him that things would be completely different. For one, the physical trainers at the new gym were old bodyguards as well as Bates and several other undercover, unnamed, marksmen placed around the Talon throughout the day. Still he wondered when Lex would turn into the man he had seen from the other side of the glass box he was in.

Lex felt the strange vibe that Mark did as well. He watched Mark carefully walk around the simple kitchen as if he was the top chef in a five star restaurant looking at an inspection. Lex understood from the strained look on his face, though, Mark was deep in thought. He wasn't the only one.

In the last couple of weeks, Lex had thought about Chloe's choice for the boss. Mark wanted to be a restaurateur from the time that Lex's men had taken him. At the time, Lex had chuckled at the man's ability to erase memories, thinking it would have helped in the business by making critics forget how bad his little place really was.

But Mark had been an asset that Lex never quite counted on. One of the first acquisitions, Lex remembered Mark had been easily persuaded to host a business dinner in his place, obviously still very naïve to the Luthor meaning of business meetings at odd hours.

Watching Mark's steps now, Mark acted as if every step could be his personal time bomb. Lex wondered if he had been able to rid his own memories of what his task had been, simply touching all those meteor infected before Lex returned them to their homes and families. Still, when Mark was found after the destruction of the Chicago holdings, the experiments were far from over. He only knew that Mark could erase up to a certain point in time and generally it worked better when the person was thinking of that moment at the time.

Now, Lex still wondered if Mark remembered Chloe from his work. He was careful to never speak to both of them as knowing each other before, but knew there had to be a reason for her choosing Mark. True, he had some sense of the restaurant business, but there was more he would hopefully figure out in time. Still, Mark had never been a bad patient and Lex somehow respected the man for not immediately lashing out at him when Chloe disappeared the first day.

But Lex knew from his research on Isis that Mark had great power that Chloe left him with. Lex would be cautious in putting the pieces together because Mark could easily turn the tables on him. Mark was Chloe's fallback plan if she had one Lex thought. Now Mark held the reigns for Lex's finality. Mornings when he was alone with Mark, he waited to see how long it would be before Mark simply lost his cool and took after him with a knife from the kitchen or better yet, touched him. Strangely, Lex wanted it to happen, to see what he would feel.

Realizing that the psycho babble in his brain was causing his loss of immediate focus, Lex watched as Mark passed him carefully in the narrow galley kitchen, eyeing his confusion. "The arrangement now causes less movement on Mario's part. He can get orders out faster without having to walk around as much," Lex simply explained hoping it would suffice. He wasn't in the mood to get reprimanded by one of his old detainees.

"Fine." Mark slipped his phone out of his pocket and walked out through the double doors as Lex continued to stack the last set of clean dishes and then roll his eyes at the stack of napkins that were kindly left the night before for him to fold this morning. Going green sucked, he thought as he trifolded the first one.

A few minutes later he glanced up and saw Mark break into a small grin. Mark didn't generally grin in his direction and it made Lex feel odd. "I have a favor to ask of you."

"A favor from me? If you remember correctly, I'm the prisoner here." Lex tried to make it sound like an insult to Mark to remind him where he came from but it didn't exactly pan out.

"Jake just called and has mono. Apparently his college girlfriend and never mind," he trailed as Lex sneered at him. "I need a bus boy hopefully just through Christmas. I know Chloe had said…"

"It's fine. It'll be nice to interact with people again."

Mark looked unsure at Lex's sideways comment. "You're going to bus tables, not wait. Look, we open in thirty minutes and obviously you still have a lot to get done. I will be out front setting down the chairs and preparing for opening." Mark turned and walked out of the kitchen as Lex chuckled slightly. He still had something, just enough to annoy the boss.

The breakfast crowd had been light for a Tuesday. Besides the few high school students that came in for breakfast tacos and the yoga class participants that came for wheat grass tea, the morning had been light. Lex had breathed a sigh of relief that besides a few errant glances and longer stares from high school girls, no one made a big deal of his being there.

The lunch crowd he was more concerned about, but was still on the light side. Lex wondered if the whole gym, yoga, sandwich shop was just a front for his incarceration because after seeing the crowds on the particular Tuesday, he wondered. Monday was always packed, Wednesday was good in the evening for the before youth group church crowd, and the weekends were packed. He had to come up with something for Tuesday.

He moved along to another table, holding the plastic bin on his hip white trying to keep it from touching anything but the apron he found in the kitchen. Slightly amused, he rolled his eyes every time he wondered what people thought of Lex Luthor in an apron.

"Any chance I could get a refill?" he heard from a female voice behind him. Turning around he eyed the brunette who moved to make herself obviously what she thought, more alluring. She waved the glass playfully in the air at him as she smirked.

"I'll get your waiter," Lex casually answered and started off before he felt a hand take his. Turning around, he looked down in his hand and pulled from the woman.

"Lex Luthor bussing tables. I know they had said you were working here as part of your, how should I put it, rehab. But certainly thought you would be doing something more along the lines of running the place."

Lex eyed the woman before starting silently away from her. When she continued to raise her voice, he rolled his eyes. This was what he had been afraid of, what Chloe had been protecting him from. All of this to help out a supposed meteor freak from having to be short handed today. Walking back over in her direction, he put on the trademark smirk and sat down in the chair across from her.

Running his hand along her outstretched hand, he tipped his head slightly. "Six months ago, you could have easily had a story along with a nice pair of earrings. You're a beautiful woman and obviously quite a vixen for when you need something. Probably very close to my type at one time. However, you can probably guess at my wage now and I'm guessing you're only hear to catch the few lines for the Inquisitor that Chloe Sullivan has missed for the Daily Planet."

The woman's face curled up into a sneer as she pulled her hand from Lex's, noticing now it was not as soft and perfect as she thought it would be. Lex leaned back in the chair and pointed behind his head before continuing. "Now, either you can sample the chicken Caesar salad, which is wonderful and probably all your bird size stomach could handle or as the sign says we can politely refuse to serve you." Lex got up from where he was seated and pointed over in the direction of a pretty red haired girl. "Now, I'll go get your server and you can decide."

The woman sat stunned into silence as Lex Luthor smirked back in her direction and startled the red haired teenager out of her daze by pointing the woman out. The woman got up from her seat, threw down a few bills, and walked out as the little waitress walked up. She rolled her eyes and went back to her place at the bar waiting for someone else to take the seat. Lex walked over and cleaned the table.

Walking back past the teenage waitress, he handed her a five dollar bill that was part of his very unused stipend he was allowed a week. She looked down at the crisply folded note--the exact amount the woman had left her short on the bill--then back up at Lex. Lex just passed her, "it was on the couch," but the little waitress knew better.

At the end of the day, he watched as Mark ran the totals in the office. Lex stared at the pile of dishes that had accumulated over the day while doing his job and bussing tables. Lowering another pile into the soapy water, he noticed it was what he now considered his free night since no one visited.

"Mark, the numbers today weren't good?" Lex immediately got to the point of the question.

Mark looked in his direction and then at the pad in his hand. Lex put the small pad he had been secretly documenting what people had bought, what was advertised, and the tip amounts for the each waitress that were assigned that day.

"When did you find time to analyze this?"

"Cleaning tables isn't exactly hard work, and it gave me time to think. Then during my lunch break, I took the relaxation class. Don't look at me like that. I started noticing something, and if you'll let me continue to work the floor someway I can help."

Mark let out an exasperated sigh and pointed to the chair across the small desk from his. Lex took the pad and made a few more notes. "First, the special for Tuesday does not sell at all, not compared to Monday or Thursday. The vast majority of the clientele on Tuesdays seem to be the men's lunch crowd that want to eat something for a lack of a better term, manly. They spend half an hour in that men's relaxation class before they return to the school or work and your special is vegan for the day. That crowd runs on Wednesdays with the spinning group over from the community college in the big gym. Serve meat for men on Tuesday, period."

Mark stared at Lex and the simple logic. "You were really good at what you did legally."

Lex wasn't quite sure if it was a question or a statement. He couldn't buy it as a compliment either way. Leaving the piece of paper with his scrawled notes on it, he took his pad and disappeared upstairs to finish off Change your Brain, Change your Life. He sighed thinking of the chapter he was avoiding, "The Dark Side."

*******

Things progressed quickly over the following couple of days. Lex continued staying quiet as more people showed up to quietly gawk at the billionaire that wiped down tables and pushed the broom across the floor during the lunch hour.

Lex actually didn't mind as much as he thought he would for being put on display. Besides a few errant pictures and what he was sure was a few more videos shot by camera phones for youtube, people didn't bother him. It was like a warning had been put out by the demeaning Inquisitor princess to not invade the Luthor territory, but he never heard if an article had been written or not.

He looked up from cleaning a table and nearly dropped the plastic bin that he was balancing against his hip. Standing up straight, he eyeballed the man that now met his stare.

"Lex," he spoke casually as he walked up, trying not to act as if anything had ever been between them. But that was where the pleasantries ended. "I see that Chloe really has made good on her word. So how do you enjoy living like the other half?"

Lex stood up and pushed the plastic bin into the booth reminding himself he had to wipe it again later. "Clark, I would say it's a pleasure but I would be lying. Are you here to eat or gawk like the other customers?"

Clark shook his head in disbelief that Lex still felt he had the power or audacity to even say something in his position now. Maybe Lex felt he was still above the law in some fashion. The smugness never seemed to waver, in the courtroom and now even in an apron. Leaning into him, Clark seethed, "I don't know exactly why Chloe is sticking her neck out for you after all the hell you put her through, but if you ever take advantage of your situation or Chloe, the justice system won't save you."

Clark brushed by Lex and headed into the backroom, which led to another way into Mark's office. Lex watched as his complete enemy said less to him in that one conversation than any others as of late, but still made his point. The conversation that Clark had with Lex only a few months earlier seem to hit him again. "There's nothing that's lost that can't be found again." Maybe everyone had given up on him; Clark was the last one to jump ship.

Lex let his shoulders drop slightly, picking up the bin and wiping the seat down, again hearing a camera phone click at the sight. The carnival act was the one thing he had problems living down every night, especially when he couldn't see the results of the shots. He watched Clark again walk past him, glancing at him slightly before he left the building. There was something awkward about the moment he couldn't put his finger on.

******

"Dammit," he scowled at the porcelain bowl and sat back, knowing that the pants he wore would be deemed ruined if he had anything to say about it. He stared at the crystal white bowl in front of him and wanted to scream. He had rarely found something so frustrating in his life, much less while under the state's care. He tried to imagine whether this was Chloe's doing to have these tasks assigned to him or Mark's just getting back at him.

Still, he was not going to give up on the task until it was finished. He looked at the parts that Mark had handed him in a bag as he explained the repairman was busy for two more days but the ladies room had to be fixed. Shaking his head, he wondered why the man had to throw out the directions if there had been any.

He heard the main door to the restroom open and groaned silently, "We're closed."

"I can see why, although I was thinking that most of the lights would be off, but see there's a reason for this one to be on." Chloe squatted unceremoniously next to the other side of the stall and leaned her head over. Even frustrated, Lex hampered a pseudo grin in her direction seeing her face all contorted. "Need help?"

"Are you offering because I look desperate or because you need the ladies room to work by tomorrow?"

"I would say the second one, but at this point, the look on your face says the first one. And no, we're going to have to do this together. I haven't the first clue." Chloe stood back up as Lex stood up and pushed the stall door open.

"You should have installed the industrial toilets in here with the renovations," he quipped wondering what kind of reaction he would get. His first run in with Chloe in what seemed like a week's time, he didn't want her to take off again.

Chloe eyed the thoughts that quietly went across his face. She had gotten better at reading the distinguishable. As if he had blatantly told her, Chloe shook her head. "He's out of town today; some photo assignment with another reporter."

"Ahh," Lex casually dropped and let the uneasy unvocalized moment pass. Handing her the pieces that he was still confused about on the floor, he handed her the pieces he had managed to get out of the toilet to begin with.

The two leaned against the outside wall of the ladies restroom and assembled the ball and cock mechanism the same as the one that he had removed. Lex screwed the last piece in and turned on the water to a flood of spray followed by genuine laughter. "Here, I think we need to screw the bottom piece to the tank a little better," she continued to giggle as Lex dried his face off on one of the towels that Chloe handed him.

"You think?" He shot her a dirty look as he continued tightening the grip on the undertank screw. Turning the water on once again, he felt for any leaks and nodded his head. "Finished."

"Yes, you are," Chloe responded. She leaned against the wall in the ladies room and stared at Lex as he walked over and looked in the mirror. "Don't cry. It's only water. Besides, don't you feel accomplished that you'll never have to call a plumber to do that again."

"Great, I've saved $75." Lex stopped from drying his face off and thought about the remark. Between learning to cook his own meals and fixing up the Talon, it felt strange becoming practical and in a manner of speaking self-sufficient. Glancing at Chloe from the mirror's perspective, she simply stood with her arms across her chest in almost a smug pose. "I guess it could come in handy once I get out of here."

It wasn't quite what she had been fishing for from the experiment but he was getting closer. She reached for her bag that sat in the little powder room and pulled out a folder. "Here, it's not good news but I think it's better than what you could have been offered. I talked to your attorney and he pleaded with the judge. I told them I would bring them to you to look over. The trial date is set for February.

Lex followed Chloe out of the bathroom into the dark main floor of the sandwich shop and sat at one of the tables. Flipping through the documents, he continued to nodded and huff it seemed at every charge that continued to plague him. "Any idea on the punishment if these stand up?"

Chloe sat across from him as he flipped through the rest of the file. "No, like I said the trial is for another couple of months. Your attorney is trying the hasn't he suffered enough plea but I don't think it's going to work."

Lex silently bit his lip as one eyebrow quickly quirked. He knew that plea was dead in the water. "Thanks. Can I…"

"They're yours. If you think of any notes you want to make, let me know." Chloe looked at her watch and smiled. "I.."

"Yeah, it's late. I have workcamp tomorrow morning. Tell me something, why if you had a say in my incarceration did you not fight the whole weekend warrior digging trenches on the side of the road plan?"

Chloe stood up and threw her coat on before grabbing her keys from inside her purse. She turned back and looked at Lex who simply stood and stayed standing when she stood. She tried not to giggle at the strange mental image that made her feel dirty and warm all at the same time. "I thought the people, women in particular, would enjoy seeing you sweat. At least I used to."

Chloe walked out of the front door and locked it, not making eye contact with Lex after the comment. He tried to force the small grin down off his face remembering what she was talking about. Those years ago, in her and her father's own hiding place, she and Lex would try to outdo each other, her on the elliptical trainer and he on the treadmill. Running his hand along his chin, Lex went upstairs quickly and changed before disappearing into the small gym that he never noticed before was set up just like he had done for her years ago.