Couple(s): ChLana; platonic ChLex (It had to be in here!)
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Everything but the plot belongs to someone other than me. Rufus Wainwright owns the lyric I used for the title. (It comes from the song 'In My Arms', to be more specific.)
Spoilers for: a reference to 'Kinetic'
Author's Note: Lana's POV. No smut, I'm sorry; it would detract from the plot at this point. Maybe, someday, I'll do a smutty ChLana for everyone who's begging. ;-) I hope everyone will keep reading, anyway.
Feeling As Helpless As the Elephant Man
******
Nell was actually pretty happy for a while; her new boyfriend--some freelance journalist she refused to let me meet--seemed to have something to do with her change in mood. I was relieved that she'd found someone else--for a while I feared she would try to steal Jonathan Kent from Clark's mother. (Jonathan and my aunt had dated in high school, and she, apparently, took it hard when he went and married Martha.)
I figured I could use her cheerfulness to my advantage; I had to ask her about visiting Abigail, and to do that, I knew I had to 'come out'. I knew she'd be more likely to accept me if she wasn't annoyed at something. "Nell?" I began sweetly over breakfast the Sunday after Chloe made the call.
She glanced up from the paper and smiled slightly. "Yes, Lana?"
"You know Chloe Sullivan, right?"
Her forehead furrowed while she forced herself to remember. "She's that blonde friend of yours, yes?"
Oh, right; Chloe had met Nell a week before, though we hadn't planned for it to happen. She was on her way out when my aunt came home from a date, and Clo had decided to introduce herself as my friend. "Yes, she is."
"Okay. What about her?"
"Um, she's going to California to visit her mom this summer, and she asked me to come with. Is that okay?" It was best to wait until she asked why Chloe wanted me to go; blurting out, 'I'm
gay', wasn't ideal.
Nell pursed her lips and rested her chin on her fist. That was her, 'I know I should say 'no', but it's important to you' face. "Why does she want you to go with her?"
"Because we're friends."
Sighing, she shrugged. "Well, all right; as long as you let me call her mother first."
Uh oh. I hadn't thought of that! Abigail wouldn't 'out' us, would she? "Uh, I can get the number from Chloe today."
"Splendid. Finish your breakfast." That was the end of that; she went back to the paper, and I went back to my toast and yogurt.
******
Chloe and her father were finishing up their own meal when I knocked on the front door around ten o'clock. That both she and Gabe were late sleepers struck me as cute. "Hey, Chloe," I called through the screen.
She bounced over several seconds later, beaming. "Hey, Lana!" In a short, bright red skirt and a silky black shirt, she was beautiful. "Are you going to stare at me all afternoon, or are you coming inside?"
I opted for the latter. She dropped a quick kiss on my cheek, then tugged me into the dining room. Gabe stood when I entered, and he gave me a warm hug. "Hi, Lana. It's good to see you. I'll leave you girls alone." He hurried away, in the direction of his office.
Frowning quizzically at my girlfriend, I asked, "what was that all about?"
Clo laughed and wrapped her arms around my waist in a backwards hug. "He's supposedly ecstatic that I'm really happy. Because of that, he's always overjoyed to see you." She pressed a soft kiss on the back of my neck. "As am I. What did Nell say?"
I twisted around so I was facing her. "She said it was fine, as long as she can call Abigail first."
Her bright eyes widened; she was apparently thinking much the same way I'd been earlier. "Oh. I'm sure Mom won't say anything...you could just tell Nell; I told Dad, and he was okay with it, after a little while."
Ha, me come out to Nell. Again, ha. "Clo, she's *Nell*; I'm lucky she loved Whitney, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to date until I was ninety." Whoops, that was the wrong thing to say! Her face hardened, and she pulled away from me.
"Yeah, lucky she loved Whitney." Turning her back, her shoulders rose and fell in a sigh.
"Sweetie, I'm sorry," I whispered, brushing her lower back with my hand. "I was just using him as an example; you know I never loved him, don't you?"
With a sigh, she finally nodded. I slipped my hands under the front of her shirt and massaged her stomach. "I guess; I just don't like that you were with him, and that Clark had a huge thing for you, and that, that..." It was the first time I'd ever seen her truly upset.
"Shh, let's go in the living room." I took her hand and pulled her toward the Sullivans' over-stuffed blue couch that matched the color of the paint. The entire house seemed to coordinate, I noticed. "What's wrong today?" I continued, resting my forehead against her shoulder.
"Nothing," Chloe whispered, kissing my hair fiercely.
"Oh, right," I shot back.
That was when the sobs started. She shook in my arms, and there was nothing I could say to calm her. "Friday at school...I was sitting in the *Torch* office during my study hall. One of the seniors on my staff--the guy who does the sports column on a regular basis--came in with a friend of his. The first one grabbed me and the other took the disk out of my lap top and...and stomped on it till it broke."
My stomach turned; I knew where she was going, and I didn't like it.
"He said that, if I didn't stop--and I quote-- 'being a goddamn dyke- whore', he was going to do the same to me." A shudder passed through her as a new wave of tears hit. "I know I shouldn't have let it bother me, but it did! How do people know? Why are they so cruel?"
Taking a deep breath, I held her tighter, wanting to stop her from shaking. "Someone probably saw us together. God, I'm so sorry, Clo," I whispered, staring into her eyes. "You need to tell someone what happened, like the principal."
Her eyes widened. "I can't do that! Tell the principal that I'm gay? After what happened, I'm sure admitting it will get me killed! You've heard the Matthew Shepard story, haven't you? I'll get kicked off the paper! I'll get things thrown at me! I could get bludgeoned to death! This is not a tolerant world, Lana." She was screaming, her face flushing with anger.
Gabe, having heard her shouting, was in the room in a flash, holding his daughter. We exchanged a worried look over her shoulder. "Shh, Chloe, sweetie," he whispered, rubbing his daughter's back. "We'll take care of it; really. Don't worry."
"Daddy," she whispered, sounding small and afraid, "I'm so scared."
"You need some sleep," I told her; she'd been working late hours on the paper, and I knew that we'd spent several late evenings together during the week. "Let's go upstairs and you can rest, okay?" As I spoke, Gabe started to carry her to the stairs.
We were in her room, and she was sprawled across her red bedspread. "Just sleep, honey," Gabe said quietly, tucking her comforter around her slight frame. "I'll make some phone calls and get this all sorted out."
"'kay," Chloe replied, already closing her eyes. "Lana, stay?"
"Of course." I slid onto the bed next to her, then mouthed a quick, 'thank you' to her father. He waved, nodded, and shut the door behind him.
And so my girlfriend slept; I watched her the entire time, more frightened than I cared to admit.
******
I went into the Talon late that day--I usually started around two, but I didn't get there until four. Lex, who was there, surprisingly, didn't care. "Hi, Miss Lang," he greeted me from a table where he was reading the *Daily Planet*.
"Mister Luthor," I returned with a slight smile. I ducked behind the counter, relieving one of the waitresses who'd been taking over in my absence. "Lex," I started, between customers.
He glanced up at me, his bright eyes curious; rarely did I address him by his first name. "Yes?"
Chloe would probably be angry at me; she didn't trust him as much as I did. Still, I knew the school administrators would do nothing. "Something happened to Chloe the other day, and I'm sure it'll happen again. I want your help making sure it doesn't." The authoritative tone I took surprised me.
My boss was behind the counter with me, his fingers tapping against the wood. "What happened?" He really cared about Chloe--he thought of her as a friend, he'd said before.
I related the sordid story, getting as pissed off as he looked. "Who are these bastards?" he asked quietly, his eyes narrowing.
I confessed I didn't know, but Chloe, of course, would. He himself called the Sullivans' house from the Talon's private phone, and I couldn't help but hear his side of the conversation. "Gabe, hi; it's Lex Luthor. Can I speak to Chloe? No, it's nothing like that, I simply need to ask her about what happened the other day. Yes, Lana told me. Yes, I fully intend to do something about it. *Thank* you." He sighed in exasperation, then his voice grew friendly.
"Chloe, hello; this is Lex." Pause, I could hear her rapid questions even from where I stood--'what did Lana tell you?' 'You aren't going to laugh, are you?' 'I swear if you...'-- "Miss Sullivan-" That always shut her up- "please calm down. I plan to help you; I only need to know the names of the pigs who threatened you." Another pause. "*No*, I assure you I don't have an ulterior motive. You know I consider you a friend, and friends....thank you. Let me write that down." There was a message pad by the phone, but he had to fish around in his pants pocket for a pen. "Thanks, Chloe. Please tell me next time this happens, all right? Feel better. Bye."
When he hung up, I touched his arm briefly. "Thanks a lot, Lex," I said gently, smiling genuinely.
"No problem." He headed back to his table, cell phone already in hand.
"Wait," I called out before he could dial a number. I had his attention again. "You're not going to kill anyone, are you?"
A smirk and a chuckle. "You know that's not how I work, Lana. I'm simply going to teach them that it doesn't pay to mess with friends of Lex Luthor."
I thought back to the time when my girlfriend was pushed through a window in Luthor Manor, and the way Lex took care of the guys who hurt her. I instinctively felt that everything would be okay eventually.
MORE SOON!
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Everything but the plot belongs to someone other than me. Rufus Wainwright owns the lyric I used for the title. (It comes from the song 'In My Arms', to be more specific.)
Spoilers for: a reference to 'Kinetic'
Author's Note: Lana's POV. No smut, I'm sorry; it would detract from the plot at this point. Maybe, someday, I'll do a smutty ChLana for everyone who's begging. ;-) I hope everyone will keep reading, anyway.
Feeling As Helpless As the Elephant Man
******
Nell was actually pretty happy for a while; her new boyfriend--some freelance journalist she refused to let me meet--seemed to have something to do with her change in mood. I was relieved that she'd found someone else--for a while I feared she would try to steal Jonathan Kent from Clark's mother. (Jonathan and my aunt had dated in high school, and she, apparently, took it hard when he went and married Martha.)
I figured I could use her cheerfulness to my advantage; I had to ask her about visiting Abigail, and to do that, I knew I had to 'come out'. I knew she'd be more likely to accept me if she wasn't annoyed at something. "Nell?" I began sweetly over breakfast the Sunday after Chloe made the call.
She glanced up from the paper and smiled slightly. "Yes, Lana?"
"You know Chloe Sullivan, right?"
Her forehead furrowed while she forced herself to remember. "She's that blonde friend of yours, yes?"
Oh, right; Chloe had met Nell a week before, though we hadn't planned for it to happen. She was on her way out when my aunt came home from a date, and Clo had decided to introduce herself as my friend. "Yes, she is."
"Okay. What about her?"
"Um, she's going to California to visit her mom this summer, and she asked me to come with. Is that okay?" It was best to wait until she asked why Chloe wanted me to go; blurting out, 'I'm
gay', wasn't ideal.
Nell pursed her lips and rested her chin on her fist. That was her, 'I know I should say 'no', but it's important to you' face. "Why does she want you to go with her?"
"Because we're friends."
Sighing, she shrugged. "Well, all right; as long as you let me call her mother first."
Uh oh. I hadn't thought of that! Abigail wouldn't 'out' us, would she? "Uh, I can get the number from Chloe today."
"Splendid. Finish your breakfast." That was the end of that; she went back to the paper, and I went back to my toast and yogurt.
******
Chloe and her father were finishing up their own meal when I knocked on the front door around ten o'clock. That both she and Gabe were late sleepers struck me as cute. "Hey, Chloe," I called through the screen.
She bounced over several seconds later, beaming. "Hey, Lana!" In a short, bright red skirt and a silky black shirt, she was beautiful. "Are you going to stare at me all afternoon, or are you coming inside?"
I opted for the latter. She dropped a quick kiss on my cheek, then tugged me into the dining room. Gabe stood when I entered, and he gave me a warm hug. "Hi, Lana. It's good to see you. I'll leave you girls alone." He hurried away, in the direction of his office.
Frowning quizzically at my girlfriend, I asked, "what was that all about?"
Clo laughed and wrapped her arms around my waist in a backwards hug. "He's supposedly ecstatic that I'm really happy. Because of that, he's always overjoyed to see you." She pressed a soft kiss on the back of my neck. "As am I. What did Nell say?"
I twisted around so I was facing her. "She said it was fine, as long as she can call Abigail first."
Her bright eyes widened; she was apparently thinking much the same way I'd been earlier. "Oh. I'm sure Mom won't say anything...you could just tell Nell; I told Dad, and he was okay with it, after a little while."
Ha, me come out to Nell. Again, ha. "Clo, she's *Nell*; I'm lucky she loved Whitney, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to date until I was ninety." Whoops, that was the wrong thing to say! Her face hardened, and she pulled away from me.
"Yeah, lucky she loved Whitney." Turning her back, her shoulders rose and fell in a sigh.
"Sweetie, I'm sorry," I whispered, brushing her lower back with my hand. "I was just using him as an example; you know I never loved him, don't you?"
With a sigh, she finally nodded. I slipped my hands under the front of her shirt and massaged her stomach. "I guess; I just don't like that you were with him, and that Clark had a huge thing for you, and that, that..." It was the first time I'd ever seen her truly upset.
"Shh, let's go in the living room." I took her hand and pulled her toward the Sullivans' over-stuffed blue couch that matched the color of the paint. The entire house seemed to coordinate, I noticed. "What's wrong today?" I continued, resting my forehead against her shoulder.
"Nothing," Chloe whispered, kissing my hair fiercely.
"Oh, right," I shot back.
That was when the sobs started. She shook in my arms, and there was nothing I could say to calm her. "Friday at school...I was sitting in the *Torch* office during my study hall. One of the seniors on my staff--the guy who does the sports column on a regular basis--came in with a friend of his. The first one grabbed me and the other took the disk out of my lap top and...and stomped on it till it broke."
My stomach turned; I knew where she was going, and I didn't like it.
"He said that, if I didn't stop--and I quote-- 'being a goddamn dyke- whore', he was going to do the same to me." A shudder passed through her as a new wave of tears hit. "I know I shouldn't have let it bother me, but it did! How do people know? Why are they so cruel?"
Taking a deep breath, I held her tighter, wanting to stop her from shaking. "Someone probably saw us together. God, I'm so sorry, Clo," I whispered, staring into her eyes. "You need to tell someone what happened, like the principal."
Her eyes widened. "I can't do that! Tell the principal that I'm gay? After what happened, I'm sure admitting it will get me killed! You've heard the Matthew Shepard story, haven't you? I'll get kicked off the paper! I'll get things thrown at me! I could get bludgeoned to death! This is not a tolerant world, Lana." She was screaming, her face flushing with anger.
Gabe, having heard her shouting, was in the room in a flash, holding his daughter. We exchanged a worried look over her shoulder. "Shh, Chloe, sweetie," he whispered, rubbing his daughter's back. "We'll take care of it; really. Don't worry."
"Daddy," she whispered, sounding small and afraid, "I'm so scared."
"You need some sleep," I told her; she'd been working late hours on the paper, and I knew that we'd spent several late evenings together during the week. "Let's go upstairs and you can rest, okay?" As I spoke, Gabe started to carry her to the stairs.
We were in her room, and she was sprawled across her red bedspread. "Just sleep, honey," Gabe said quietly, tucking her comforter around her slight frame. "I'll make some phone calls and get this all sorted out."
"'kay," Chloe replied, already closing her eyes. "Lana, stay?"
"Of course." I slid onto the bed next to her, then mouthed a quick, 'thank you' to her father. He waved, nodded, and shut the door behind him.
And so my girlfriend slept; I watched her the entire time, more frightened than I cared to admit.
******
I went into the Talon late that day--I usually started around two, but I didn't get there until four. Lex, who was there, surprisingly, didn't care. "Hi, Miss Lang," he greeted me from a table where he was reading the *Daily Planet*.
"Mister Luthor," I returned with a slight smile. I ducked behind the counter, relieving one of the waitresses who'd been taking over in my absence. "Lex," I started, between customers.
He glanced up at me, his bright eyes curious; rarely did I address him by his first name. "Yes?"
Chloe would probably be angry at me; she didn't trust him as much as I did. Still, I knew the school administrators would do nothing. "Something happened to Chloe the other day, and I'm sure it'll happen again. I want your help making sure it doesn't." The authoritative tone I took surprised me.
My boss was behind the counter with me, his fingers tapping against the wood. "What happened?" He really cared about Chloe--he thought of her as a friend, he'd said before.
I related the sordid story, getting as pissed off as he looked. "Who are these bastards?" he asked quietly, his eyes narrowing.
I confessed I didn't know, but Chloe, of course, would. He himself called the Sullivans' house from the Talon's private phone, and I couldn't help but hear his side of the conversation. "Gabe, hi; it's Lex Luthor. Can I speak to Chloe? No, it's nothing like that, I simply need to ask her about what happened the other day. Yes, Lana told me. Yes, I fully intend to do something about it. *Thank* you." He sighed in exasperation, then his voice grew friendly.
"Chloe, hello; this is Lex." Pause, I could hear her rapid questions even from where I stood--'what did Lana tell you?' 'You aren't going to laugh, are you?' 'I swear if you...'-- "Miss Sullivan-" That always shut her up- "please calm down. I plan to help you; I only need to know the names of the pigs who threatened you." Another pause. "*No*, I assure you I don't have an ulterior motive. You know I consider you a friend, and friends....thank you. Let me write that down." There was a message pad by the phone, but he had to fish around in his pants pocket for a pen. "Thanks, Chloe. Please tell me next time this happens, all right? Feel better. Bye."
When he hung up, I touched his arm briefly. "Thanks a lot, Lex," I said gently, smiling genuinely.
"No problem." He headed back to his table, cell phone already in hand.
"Wait," I called out before he could dial a number. I had his attention again. "You're not going to kill anyone, are you?"
A smirk and a chuckle. "You know that's not how I work, Lana. I'm simply going to teach them that it doesn't pay to mess with friends of Lex Luthor."
I thought back to the time when my girlfriend was pushed through a window in Luthor Manor, and the way Lex took care of the guys who hurt her. I instinctively felt that everything would be okay eventually.
MORE SOON!
