Gabe's car pulled into the Kent driveway and stopped near the house as he turned to face his already highly caffeinated daughter.

"I think we're at the wrong house, let me turn around and head-"

"No! Daddy, don't you dare!" She fixed him with an evil glare, and he smiled at her lovingly.

"I'm just kidding honey, I know we're in the right place. You must be really excited."

The glare faded a bit, but Chloe still kept her eye on him as she said, "I guess you could say that, it's not like it's that big of a deal or anything, it's just dinner." Even as she said it, she knew it was a lie; it was a huge deal to her, but she wasn't going to let her dad know that. She'd never live it down.

"If you say so honey, oh look here comes the valet, I better let him know I'm not letting him get behind the wheel of my car, he's way too young to drive yet."

Clark had stepped out of the barn and was making his way over to the Sullivan's vehicle, trying to appear nonchalant about the whole situation.

"Daddy!" she said with a playful swat to Gabe's arm, causing a raucous bout of laughter to erupt from him.

Clark, having not heard any of what went on, walked up to the car and leaned down, "Hello Mr. Sullivan, how are you today?"

"I'm doing just fine Clark, thank you for asking, how 'bout yourself?" Gabe was still surprised at Clark's manners, a refreshing change of pace from most of the people he'd known. 'They raise 'em good out here.'

"I'm doing just fine, hi Chloe."

"Hi Clark!" Chloe's response had been bubblier than she'd intended and she hoped neither of them had noticed it.

"Well, I suppose I should let her get out so she can go chow down for a while, just as soon as I figure out how to unlock these darn doors." He made a show of fumbling with the door locks, to Clark's amusement and Chloe's irritation.

Finally, he seemed to get it right, and Chloe's door was unlocked. Before she could open it though, Clark sprinted around to the other side and got the door for her, holding his hand out to her to help Chloe get out.

"Thanks Kent, I don't know if I could have opened that big heavy door by myself," Chloe snarked at Clark, doing her best not to let out a girlish squee at being treated so nicely. Clark blushed a little, but still kept his hand out for her, and was happy when she took it and stepped out of the car.

He closed the door behind her and walked back around to the driver's side, leaning down to say goodbye to Gabe.

"Take good care of her Clark, I'll be back in a few hours to pick her up. Try not to let her eat any beans though, I can't fit any more air fresheners in here without taking out the back seat."

Horrified, Chloe hissed, "Dad!" Clark couldn't hold back a laugh, so Chloe rewarded his willpower with a solid punch to the arm. Gabe was laughing too, and decided he had best leave before he got punched again.

Waving at the two teens, he put the car into reverse and said, "Have fun sweetheart, don't do anything I wouldn't do. Bye Clark."

"Bye Mr. Sullivan, thank you for dropping her off tonight."

"I know she's in good hands; remember, I'll be back in a few hours." At that, he gave a final wave and started back down the driveway, a contented smile on his face at knowing she really was in good hands with the Kents, and especially with Clark.

Chloe was holding her head in her hands, thoroughly embarrassed about her dad as usual, but even more so because it had been in front of Clark.

The object of her thoughts turned away from the driveway and back to her, noticing for the first time the look on her face and the reaction her dad had gotten out of her. It made him smile, and he touched her shoulder ever so lightly to get her attention, amazed at how soft and warm she felt under his hand.

"Chloe, hey, you still with me there?"

She looked up and flashed him a grin in return, "Yep, and I'm ready to eat!" His hand lingered a moment more before he pulled away, not noticing the look of disappointment in her eyes at the loss of touch.

"I think mom's about done so let's head in and get situated, she's looking forward to meeting you."

"The feeling's mutual, Clark." Chloe had heard quite a bit about the Kents since arriving in Smallville, and a lot of it had been about Martha Kent's amazing food. Chloe wanted to meet her, and Jonathan too, but above all she wanted to spend the night with Clark, hanging out and having fun.

She followed him up to the house with a spring in her step and a wandering eye that took in everything around her: the house, the barn, the fields, all the animals, Clark's butt.

Forcing herself to look away, Chloe bounded up the porch steps and strode confidently into the Kent household for the first time.

-----------------

Immediately upon stepping through the door, two things became apparent to Chloe: Clark's mom had indeed been cooking up a storm, and it smelled mouthwateringly fantastic.

Jonathan and Martha were in the process of putting plates of food on the table, but they paused when they heard the door open.

Doing his best to mask his nervous smile, Clark started the introductions, "Mom, dad, this is Chloe."

Martha was the first to reply, smiling warmly as she said, "Hi Chloe, it's nice to meet you, we've heard so much."

Chiming in, Jonathan said, "Yes, you're all he's talked about for the past few days, it's good to finally meet the person behind the descriptions." Clark's blush seemed to cover his entire head, and he lowered his face to stare intently at the ground.

"Oh really? Wow, I haven't heard anything about the two of you." With this, Chloe elbowed Clark in the ribs and laughed when he rubbed them while mouthing the word "Ow."

They all shared a laugh until Martha eventually urged them all to the table, "It's going to get cold if we wait around much longer, and there isn't enough room in the fridge for many leftovers." Clark and Jonathan shared a look, and the smiles on their faces grew devious.

Taking a seat next to Clark, which caused her heart to skip a beat, Chloe couldn't help but catch the look between father and son. She looked to Martha for an explanation, but the answer she got only succeeded in confusing her further: "Make sure you get as much as you can as quick as you can Chloe, it's safer that way."

Still thoroughly lost, she turned to Clark, and he folded very quickly under her steely gaze, "Dad and I tend to eat a lot and eat it fast."

She stared at him for a few seconds, and then erupted in laughter, which Martha picked up on and amplified, while Clark and Jonathan just rolled their eyes.

After a couple of minutes, the two women had calmed down enough to begin placing food on their plates, taking extra care to get as much as they thought they could handle before handing it over to the Kent men to finish off.

As the plate of steaks was passed around, Clark speared one with his fork and held it triumphantly in front of him before plopping it down on his plate with a victorious grin, as though he'd just slain some ancient beast and saved a kingdom. Throughout his whole display, Chloe was trying not to let the water spurt out of her nose as she stifled what was sure to be a gut-busting laugh.

His parents chose to stare at their food and not look up, knowing he'd done something very teenager-ish.

He caught Chloe staring at him, and his blush came back with a vengeance as he passed the plate over to her, their hands brushing ever so slightly as she reached for the plate, making it her turn to blush as she took it from him.

They all ate in silence for a few moments before Jonathan finally spoke up, "So Chloe, how do you like our little town? I know it's no Metropolis, but it has its good sides."

Chloe smiled, and answered honestly, "I like it here, at first I didn't really think I could get used to being in so small a place after Metropolis, but it kinda grew on me." She cast a brief sideways glance at Clark, who was listening intently to her as she spoke and didn't notice the look.

Martha saw it though, and she smiled inwardly. She liked Chloe, she was very energetic and outgoing, a perfect fit for her son. Not to mention she was quite beautiful and intelligent, and given the way the two teens had looked at each other earlier, there was definitely a mutual attraction which warmed her heart.

"Leaving the big Apricot isn't an easy thing to do, but us Metropolis girls can deal with anything, right Chloe?"

"Mrs. Kent, I didn't know you were from Metropolis, though I guess that would mean Clark would've had to tell me." She glared at him, and he smiled sheepishly at her before finishing off the food on his plate.

"Born and raised, but after college I married the man of my dreams and moved here, and I couldn't be happier." Martha took her husband's hand in hers and looked adoringly into his eyes, a look which he mirrored in his own gaze.

Chloe just watched and felt her heart melt a little as she imagined the same thing happening to her someday, with another Smallville farm boy named Kent.

Having finished all of the food on the table, everyone began to clean up after themselves, with Chloe volunteering to help wash the dishes. Jonathan then remembered something he'd wanted to ask Chloe, but hadn't found the best time to do so.

"So Chloe, has Clark shown you the loft in the barn yet?"

"No, why, is there something of particular interest up there?"

Jonathan's smile grew wider and he said, "Actually, yes, I built Clark a little area of his own up there, so he could get away and have time to himself if he needed to." Pride was evident in his voice, as he knew he had done a great job on the loft, even adding lights to it so there wouldn't be any perpetual darkness.

"Oh really? I hadn't heard of it, though with Clark I'm not very surprised." She winked at Clark, and he smiled to cover up his embarrassment at being ousted by his dad. "Clark, when we're done with the dishes here, you're taking me out there to see this loft."

"But-"

"No buts Clark, you're doing it." He sighed and stopped protesting, knowing in the back of his mind that he wouldn't be able to win anyway.

Jonathan was doing his best to hold back the laughter at an all-too-familiar scene, having had to experience things like that when he was courting Martha. He failed. Everyone joined in, though Clark only chuckled politely and looked defeated.

Chloe dried the last dish, and turned to look at Clark, "Alright, it's time for you to show me the big secret you've been hiding." Clark panicked for a second before remember she meant the loft, and with a nervous smile he started towards the back door, beckoning her to follow him. "See you later Mr. and Mrs. Kent, it was very nice to meet you!"

"Night Chloe, same here." They watched Chloe bound out the door after their son, and Jonathan put his arm around his wife.

"They fit together so well, I'm glad they're friends, he looks so happy."

He looked down at her, smiling, and said, "Metropolis girls have that effect on you." She smiled back at him, and they kissed like two people still passionately in love.

-----------------

Clark led her up the steps in the barn, taking care to not let her fall if she slipped at all, and paused when they reached the top step.

"Well, here it is, the big secret." Chloe stepped around him and walked through the loft, stopping to look at everything she found within, while Clark stood in the middle watching her wander around. "Dad calls it my Fortress of Solitude."

He liked to watch her, she had so much energy that was evident in every step she took, with every word that she uttered, and with every gesture she made.

'It must be all the coffee she drinks,' he thought with a small little grin.

He was so lost in his own thoughts about Chloe that he didn't notice when she had turned to him and was addressing him to his face. Blinking, he saw her staring at him expectantly and, blushing profusely, asked what she had said.

Chloe rolled her eyes at him, but merely reiterated herself, "I asked why you chose to keep this from me when it seems like a big part of your life."

"We all have secrets Chloe, some of which are bigger than others; I would have told you soon anyway, but I guess now's as good a time as any for you to find out since you're already here." He replied, almost defensively.

She thought about it for a moment, then nodded nearly imperceptibly to herself. "I guess that makes sense, but no more secrets from here on out, ok Kent?"

His smile could have lit up an airfield as he said, "No more secrets Chloe."

"Good." Her smile matched his and they stood for a minute just looking at each other.

Then out of nowhere she stepped up to him and pulled his head down to hers, planting her lips on his and kissing him as best she could manage with the awkward angle. Unsure what to do, Clark held back from doing anything, but after a few seconds he felt the urge to kiss her back.

He was out of luck though, as she pulled away and simply looked up at him while licking her lips, trying to taste as much of him as she dared. Clark knew his face had to be a mask of confusion, covering up the fact that he really wanted to kiss her again.

"I know you've been thinking about that all day, so I wanted to get it out of the way so we can be friends." He didn't know what to say, so he just looked at her.

She smiled, and at that moment they both noticed the headlights coming up the driveway, which Chloe knew was her dad coming to pick her up.

She poked Clark in the chest with her index finger, saying, "I'll see you at school tomorrow Kent, try not to look so flabbergasted though, it doesn't suit you very well."

He managed a grin and a nod at her as she headed off down the stairs to the waiting car outside, hoping the redness in his cheeks would someday go down.

Halfway down the steps she turned and looked back to him, "I had a great time tonight Clark, hopefully we can do it more often, good night!" At this, she smiled and headed out of the barn, leaving a happily confused Clark Kent standing atop the stairwell, trying to comprehend all that had just happened.

Deciding he wouldn't be able to make sense of it for, probably, a while, he resigned himself to what he did know.

'Summer vacation is going to be interesting this year,' he thought with a grin and a happy little leap into the air as he headed back down the stairs to go check on his parents. 'Very interesting indeed.'