Chloe sat beside from Lois at the Daily Planet watching her cousin just like she'd promised. Despite the jealousy she was still feeling inside over Lois the last year, and maybe most of her life, this was turning out to be a wonderful last few months between them. Lois finally yelling at Chloe and forcing her to see the pain she had been in had really opened Chloe's eyes.
Now, finally, after seeing nothing but Clark, Chloe began to see not only a little bit of Lois in her life, but maybe even in herself.
She brought lunch for the two of them to share but when she got to Lois's desk she found her pregnant cousin sleeping in her seat. Chloe smiled, not minding at all. Lois needed all the sleep she could get after the eleven hour work shifts she'd been pulling. Not to mention trying to move everything out of the farm into the new house, accepting minimal help from friends and family.
Lois sat in her chair, eyes peacefully shut. Chloe didn't want to disturb her but her lunch break would soon be over and then no one would be here to save her from Lex or his latest assistant running the place. She had to wake her. Tapping her gently Lois jerked awake.
"I know you think I was asleep but really I was just admiring the insides of my eyelids."
"Why don't you take a personal day?" Chloe asked.
Lois placed a hand on her slightly expanding stomach.
"Oh, why do they move when you're in public?" she sighed with discomfort.
"They're moving?" Chloe asked curiously.
"Yes," Lois responded, trying to get back to work.
"How about I make you dinner and help you unpack tonight? Maybe help you shop or pick out some paint for the house?"
"Thanks," Lois said, not even lifting her eyes from her papers. "But I'm gonna be here awhile."
"Lois, I know you're trying to work yourself to death for a number of reasons but you have to take care of yourself."
"I am. I'm fine."
Chloe came over at sat on the edge of Lois's desk.
"Hey," Chloe said, tipping Lois's chin up. "Look at me. We all miss him but this can still be a great few months. This pregnancy will only happen once and working yourself to death will be a waste. Let me help you will the house, with making good memories and with taking care of you."
Lois sighed, resting her fingers on the keyboard.
"When I work I don't think about not seeing him. I don't think about them inside me all day long without him to talk to about it. I make money for the house I do nothing with and I go further with my career. I have no idea what the hell I'm doing, Chlo. There are moments I allow myself to think about my babies but then I go back to work mode."
"Give me an example?"
Lois smiled a little. She stood up and took her suit-jacket off after looking around the not-so-busy office to reveal a shirt that said, "Kicking Zone" with an arrow that pointed to her lower stomach. Chloe laughed.
"Oh that is such a cute shirt! You bought that? Where?"
"Some…maternity store last week. They're kicking so much now that I'm in the sixth month."
Chloe put both her hands on Lois's stomach.
"Hey babies," she smiled. "It's Chloe."
"Aunt Chloe," Lois corrected. "How many times do I have to correct you?"
"I don't want to make Lucy upset."
"She'll live. You're the one who's been here."
One of the babies moved beneath Chloe's hand.
"Oh, I felt one," Chloe grinned.
"Yeah, me too," Lois laughed.
"Chloe," Lana asked, coming up to them.
"Lana!" Chloe jumped, instantly feeling put between a rock and a hard place as she took her hands off of Lois who put her jacket back on as if to hide her swollen stomach.
"Am I early?"
"Uh no," Chloe replied quickly, getting her purse. "I'm ready."
Lois sat down hiding behind her screen trying to swallow the guilt she worried would never disappear.
XxX
Chloe's discomfort didn't go away as they read their menus. She peaked at Lana to see if the harsh expression had gone away. It hadn't.
"Lana," Chloe said.
"What?" she replied harshly.
"Why are you mad at me?" she asked gently.
"I don't want to talk about it."
"So we're going to sit here at our lunch in silence?"
Lana put her menu down.
"I know you work with her but how do you think it felt for me to come in and see you two so happy like that? You knew I was coming in. How could you do that to me?"
Honestly Chloe had forgotten that she and Lana had lunch plans.
"You're right, I'm sorry. It was thoughtless of me. Lois is having a hard time right now and I was trying to help her—"
"Oh Lois is having a hard time. She who destroyed my life is going through something."
"Lana, she is. I know you don't exactly swim in the same happy circle with her anymore but she's still my cousin."
"So are you just going to sit there and tell me she did nothing wrong?"
"No, of course not. Everyone knows that she and Clark made a mistake. They both made a mistake, Lana, and they know that. But Lana, you and Clark were going through problems of your own."
"So that's it! I deserved it!"
Chloe sighed.
"I knew you'd think that. No, Bizarro and that whole thing, that had nothing to do with this. Clark was not sleeping with Lois for revenge but, you know, it's almost as if you wish it were. That way, he wouldn't have stayed with her and it would've evened the score. Then he would've come back to you."
"He would've come back to me if she hadn't gotten pregnant."
"No," Chloe said defiantly. "I don't believe that."
"So in one night, she was in pain and she seduced him and now they've got their perfect little life together?"
"I don't know," Chloe said, now getting uncomfortable. "I'm just trying to make you see that you obviously want this to be Lois and Clark's fault but I think what you wish even more is that Clark were just getting revenge on you for what he saw as your infidelity. With Lex, with Bizarro, with anyone he saw you with. But he's not, Lana. He loves her. He really, really, loves her and it's not going away. But, you know I love you, you know I'm your best friend and I'm only telling you this because I want you out of pain."
"Oh I'm sure you're thinking about it day and night. You know, I am the one who has suffered through all of this. All of you have this brand new life together. You get to be an Aunt and Lois has these two children that move inside her everyday. Clark gets to go off and learn all he needs to while I am left with nothing and I am the only one who didn't do anything wrong! I got married and I slept with someone who I THOUGHT was the man I loved. These are not crimes Chloe!"
Chloe shook her head with sympathy.
"You're right. It isn't fair."
"I'm your best friend. We've been best friend for years. She slept with the man I loved and got pregnant."
"I know," Chloe said, nodding.
"She acted like she was my friend and then she stole him from me."
"I—"
"She saw something she wanted and took it!"
"What do you want? Do you want me to say Lois is a horrible person? Lana, I'm not going to do that. She made a mistake that…" Chloe couldn't finish that sentence without it sounding really bad.
"That what? That ended beautifully for everyone but me."
"Is that why you've been with Lex so much?"
Lana's face turned red and Chloe couldn't tell if it was from anger or embarrassment.
"Don't bring him into this," she said through gritted teeth.
"Lex isn't the answer, Lana. Not after what he did."
"I'm not having this conversation with you," Lana said getting up from the table. "You know Lex has been betrayed by Clark. Maybe he and I now have that in common."
Lana left despite Chloe calling after her.
~~~~To Be Continued~~~~