Clark opened his eyes and saw nothing but blackness. He was lying on his stomach, his face buried in the pillow and his arms wrapped up around it, gripping it so tight that it had busted at the seams, sending its fuzzy stuffing into his hair. He heard a muffled female voice calling for him, and for a moment he thought it was Chloe. They had some unfinished business—slap or no slap. But as he lifted his head he saw the loft was now hay free and full of bright sunlight. "Damn." He moaned, rolling himself over. The dream was indeed over—ended at a crucial moment, as most good dreams do. He noticed the book had fallen to the floor, as did his dirty dinner plate, its pages splayed and bent. He looked toward the clock to see it was well past seven in the morning.

" Clark?" He heard the voice again, this time louder, and turned to see his Mom appear at the top of the stairs. "I wanted to see if everything was ok since you didn't show up for breakfast and I..." She stopped abruptly, eyeing the scene. "Did you stay out here all night?" Clark nodded and sat up, picking pieces of fuzz from his hair. "I told you not to pull an all-nighter." She reprimanded, waggling a finger in his direction.

"Uh," Clark mumbled. "I didn't. I was studying and then fell asleep."

Martha's eyes drifted to the floor where the book was lying face up, it's cover clearly visible. "I see—studying." She smiled knowingly and Clark felt his cheeks burn with embarrassment. "Well, ya better hurry up or you'll be late for school." She warned, her voice teasing, and turned to climb back down the stairs.

When she was gone from sight, Clark bent over to pick up the mess. He smoothed out the crumpled pages of the book and tossed it into his open book bag at his feet. He couldn't believe that his Mother had caught him with it. Good luck explaining that away. But he had little time to sulk; he had to get ready for school. So he zipped out to the house and super sped through his morning routine, just in time to catch the bus as it ambled towards the drive. When he boarded he immediately saw Chloe's head pop around the corner of a seat near the back of the bus, smiling at him. As Clark approached he couldn't help but flash back to his dream when he saw her bare legs sticking out from underneath a dangerously short skirt. He was flooded with the memory of dream Chloe wrapping those same legs around him, seducing him and kissing him and...

"Did you do it?" Chloe whispered excitedly.

"What? Did I do what?" He stuttered, snapping back to reality. "Calm down Clark, she's not talking about the dream." He mentally scolded himself, looking quickly away from her thighs.

"Did you read the book?"

Clark plopped down in the seat across from her as the bus began to move forward. He unzipped his book bag and nodded. "Yeah." He whispered in return, casting a nervous glance over his shoulder.

"And?"

"And?"

"What did you think of it?"

"Well, it was," Clark paused as he slipped the book covertly into her hands. His fingertips brushed lightly against hers and a tingly sensation shot up his arm as he remembered what they were doing the last time they had touched. Well, in his dream at least. "Interesting." Clark turned to look out the window to hide the satisfied smirk that was creeping across his face

Chloe looked genuinely thrilled at this and inched forward towards him. "Really? What part did you like the best?"

Clark knew this was a dangerous question if was to be completely honest. Instead he looked her square in the eye and lied. "Um, I liked the rich period setting." Chloe eyed him strangely, as if not expecting such an answer. "Um, it really made me feel like I was there." Clark added, trying his best not to laugh.

"Really?" She smiled. "I would have thought you'd say the hot sex."

Clark began to choke, coughing nervously, and suddenly Pete's head popped up from the seat behind Chloe. He looked mildly interested but he was fixed intently on the portable gaming device in his hands. "Did I hear someone say hot sex?" It was obvious he hadn't heard any of the previous conversation, and Clark was ready to dismiss it when Chloe opened her mouth.

"Yes, I was talking about "Pastures of Passion." She smiled, waving the book in front of his face.

"Uh huh." Pete rolled his eyes. "I'd rather watch Cinemax. That chick stuff is just cheesy, and no real man would touch it with a ten foot pole." He looked up smugly from his game. "Right Clark?"

"Oh really?" Chloe butted in as Clark looked back helplessly. A gleam of triumph sparkled in her eyes. "Well, Clark read it."

Pete looked dumbstruck for a moment before he burst out laughing. "You're kidding me?"

"Nope. And he actually liked it."

"Well, great." Pete laughed, shaking his head. "You two can start a book club or something."

"Laugh if you want." Chloe interrupted, stashing the book out of site. "But I think it takes a real man to read a so called chick book." She smiled and slid into Clark's seat, leaning over to kiss him on the cheek. Her lips were incredibly soft, and even though they stayed on his cheek for only a moment, he immediately regretted giving Chloe back her book. He wanted to read it again, right before bed. And this time he would call dream Chloe by the correct name."And I just wanted to thank you for taking a stand against sexism."

That had shut Pete up, and Clark's cheeks flushed bright scarlet. He didn't feel at all like some crusader for equal rights—all he did was give in and read some silly book—but he wasn't about to argue.

"Uh, well, maybe I can, uh, ya know," Pete stammered, looking quite flustered. "Borrow it sometime, or whatever. See what the big deal is anyways."

"Uh huh." Chloe giggled, sliding back into her seat. "Sure."

"I mean," Pete continued eagerly. "I don't want to be sexist. I'm just a product of my upbringing." He reached out and touched her shoulder. "Help me Chloe." He begged, looking sad for a moment before breaking into a wide grin.

"Oh, I'll help you alright." Chloe giggled, whapping him on the arm. "But here, if you do really want to read it," She reached for the book and went to hand it over the seat to him. But before she could, Clark reached across the aisle.

"Hey, before you lend it to Pete, I was hoping I could borrow it again."

Pete and Chloe exchanged looks. "Fishing for another kiss?" She quipped, raising an eyebrow.

Clark fidgeted in his seat. "No, I started reading it but, uh..."

"You didn't finish?"

"You could put it that way." Clark smirked.

Chloe smiled and handed him back the book. "Ok then. Enjoy."

"Oh I will." Clark thought devilishly.

THE END.