4. Sleeping Dogs Lie
Lex was holding her in his arms. He had dreamed about this. Well. not like this. Although Chloe was alright, she wasn't okay. She was emotionally scarred, and was frightened for her safety.
She was alive, and that is what mattered right? Now all Lex had to do was keep her safe. Safe. She hadn't been safe for a long time, and he knew that. He wanted to keep her safe from all her evils, both real and imaginary.
Chloe just had to let him in, and that would take some work.
"Do you want something? Is there anything at all I can get for you?" Lex asked softy.
"Peace." She said looking up at him with her jaded hazel eyes. "And a glass of water."
Lex smiled softly, and gave her forehead a soft kiss before heading towards the water cooler. He left her on the floor. 'Broken. She was broken.' he thought as he rinsed out his coffee mug, and handed it to her once it was filled with cool water, A beautiful untouched surface of glass marked only by a couple of perfect circles of ice from his mini ice maker.
A sad smile traced it's way onto Chloe's face when she read the mug. "'Coffee drinkers make the best lovers'? Hey, this is my mug!"
"Yeah. Clark gave it to me when he was packing up your stuff." Lex wasn't telling her the whole truth. He hadn't asked Clark for it. Clark wasn't going to give it to him. Lex had taken it when Clark wasn't looking. As some way of remembering Chloe. Now that he knew she wasn't dead, he could give her mug back to her. Hopefully she would bring back Chloe, and leave Linnea behind. Lex just wished that he wasn't hoping for too much.
"Lex, you and Clark aren't friends." She said softly.
"What ever gave you that idea?" Lex asked softy. The last thing Chloe needed was to hear about the problems between Lex and Clark. That would only add to her escalating depression.
"I remember the way he glared at you in the courtroom." She said taking a sip of the water. Her eyes never left his. "What happened between you two? You were so close." She said after swallowing her sip of cold water. She studied his face with a patience that amazed Lex. Here she was, in the middle of what he had thought was a breakdown, and she was concerned about his former friendship with Clark.
"Clark grew up," Lex said looking at her seriously. "He grew up and realized that he needs to act, not ask somebody else when to act. Therefore I became obsolete." Lex smirked. Lex wasn't going to tell her the whole story until she opened up and told him what she had been doing since the explosion. He had to get her to open up somehow. He just hoped that she would open up soon.
She sensed that he wasn't telling her the whole truth about his relationship with Clark, but she didn't want to push it. If Lex was feeling the way she was about everything, it wouldn't be safe to push him about things that he was sensitive. If only Lex would follow the same courteously with her.
She studied his face carefully, but decided that she should leave sleeping dogs lie instead of waking them up to fight. Those proverbial dogs could very well ruin what she did have here in Gotham City if they were awoken. Chloe didn't want that. She decided to walk softly around these dogs.
"How have you been Lex? I mean since she's been - since I've been gone?" There she asked it. She wasn't trying to pry into his life like that, but she wanted to know. She wanted to know everything that he had been through since they last time they had spoken. It was too long of a wait to see him again.
She was beginning to think that he had given her up for dead. But then again she only thought this because that was what she had done. Given Chloe Sullivan up for dead. 'Chloe Sullivan is dead. Chloe Sullivan is dead.' She repeated the silent mantra in her head while she waited for an answer from Lex.
"Waiting for my father to die." He replied finally. "Looking for any hope that you were alive." He said softly, almost too softly. He didn't want to wake the sleeping dogs either. He must know that all would be lost once the dogs were awake.
"She's not, you know." She said softly. She looked up at him with her lost eyes. They were all that were left now. Her and him. That was what she had to let him realize before it was too late. It was almost too late for him. She had to protect him better than he had protect her. Better than she knew Bruce could ever try to protect her.
Bruce and Clark were sleeping dogs. The sooner they awoke and realized that she was at one point in her life, Chloe Sullivan, the sooner the world around her would crumble. She hoped that the sleeping dogs would lay, and peacefully in their sleep, die. Because the alternative was far more dangerous. If they were to wake...
She only hoped they would die.
Then they couldn't lie to her again.
Lex was holding her in his arms. He had dreamed about this. Well. not like this. Although Chloe was alright, she wasn't okay. She was emotionally scarred, and was frightened for her safety.
She was alive, and that is what mattered right? Now all Lex had to do was keep her safe. Safe. She hadn't been safe for a long time, and he knew that. He wanted to keep her safe from all her evils, both real and imaginary.
Chloe just had to let him in, and that would take some work.
"Do you want something? Is there anything at all I can get for you?" Lex asked softy.
"Peace." She said looking up at him with her jaded hazel eyes. "And a glass of water."
Lex smiled softly, and gave her forehead a soft kiss before heading towards the water cooler. He left her on the floor. 'Broken. She was broken.' he thought as he rinsed out his coffee mug, and handed it to her once it was filled with cool water, A beautiful untouched surface of glass marked only by a couple of perfect circles of ice from his mini ice maker.
A sad smile traced it's way onto Chloe's face when she read the mug. "'Coffee drinkers make the best lovers'? Hey, this is my mug!"
"Yeah. Clark gave it to me when he was packing up your stuff." Lex wasn't telling her the whole truth. He hadn't asked Clark for it. Clark wasn't going to give it to him. Lex had taken it when Clark wasn't looking. As some way of remembering Chloe. Now that he knew she wasn't dead, he could give her mug back to her. Hopefully she would bring back Chloe, and leave Linnea behind. Lex just wished that he wasn't hoping for too much.
"Lex, you and Clark aren't friends." She said softly.
"What ever gave you that idea?" Lex asked softy. The last thing Chloe needed was to hear about the problems between Lex and Clark. That would only add to her escalating depression.
"I remember the way he glared at you in the courtroom." She said taking a sip of the water. Her eyes never left his. "What happened between you two? You were so close." She said after swallowing her sip of cold water. She studied his face with a patience that amazed Lex. Here she was, in the middle of what he had thought was a breakdown, and she was concerned about his former friendship with Clark.
"Clark grew up," Lex said looking at her seriously. "He grew up and realized that he needs to act, not ask somebody else when to act. Therefore I became obsolete." Lex smirked. Lex wasn't going to tell her the whole story until she opened up and told him what she had been doing since the explosion. He had to get her to open up somehow. He just hoped that she would open up soon.
She sensed that he wasn't telling her the whole truth about his relationship with Clark, but she didn't want to push it. If Lex was feeling the way she was about everything, it wouldn't be safe to push him about things that he was sensitive. If only Lex would follow the same courteously with her.
She studied his face carefully, but decided that she should leave sleeping dogs lie instead of waking them up to fight. Those proverbial dogs could very well ruin what she did have here in Gotham City if they were awoken. Chloe didn't want that. She decided to walk softly around these dogs.
"How have you been Lex? I mean since she's been - since I've been gone?" There she asked it. She wasn't trying to pry into his life like that, but she wanted to know. She wanted to know everything that he had been through since they last time they had spoken. It was too long of a wait to see him again.
She was beginning to think that he had given her up for dead. But then again she only thought this because that was what she had done. Given Chloe Sullivan up for dead. 'Chloe Sullivan is dead. Chloe Sullivan is dead.' She repeated the silent mantra in her head while she waited for an answer from Lex.
"Waiting for my father to die." He replied finally. "Looking for any hope that you were alive." He said softly, almost too softly. He didn't want to wake the sleeping dogs either. He must know that all would be lost once the dogs were awake.
"She's not, you know." She said softly. She looked up at him with her lost eyes. They were all that were left now. Her and him. That was what she had to let him realize before it was too late. It was almost too late for him. She had to protect him better than he had protect her. Better than she knew Bruce could ever try to protect her.
Bruce and Clark were sleeping dogs. The sooner they awoke and realized that she was at one point in her life, Chloe Sullivan, the sooner the world around her would crumble. She hoped that the sleeping dogs would lay, and peacefully in their sleep, die. Because the alternative was far more dangerous. If they were to wake...
She only hoped they would die.
Then they couldn't lie to her again.
