"You're a thousand miles away today." Chloe sat across from him at the small booth in back corner of the restaurant. They were waiting for Lex and Lana to arrive. "When was the last time you slept?"

"A couple nights ago maybe."

"Maybe? What day Clark?"

He paused, thinking. "Sunday."

"Clark, it's Thursday." He shrugged. "Even you need to sleep some time."

"That's the thing, Chloe, I don't think I do. Not like every one else needs to."

"Well that doesn't mean you should go all –"

"Hey guys, sorry we're late. Lex had a conference call run long." Lana slid into the booth next to Chloe. "He's just parking the car."

"You have perfect timing," Clark said, deliberately ignoring the 'we're not done talking' look Chloe was giving him.

Lana glanced back and forth between the two of them. "Did I interrupt something?" She pushed her hair back behind one ear and arched a perfectly shaped eyebrow at them.

"No," Chloe answered. "Just Clark being –"

Lana laughed when Chloe stopped shot Clark an exasperated look. "Clark like?" she volunteered.

"Exactly."

Lex slid into the booth next to Clark just then. "Did I miss anything?"

Lana and Chloe opened their mouths to answer, but Clark cut them off. "No, nothing." He glanced at Chloe. "Nothing at all."

"So I missed a Chloe lecture then. What was it about this time?"

"Nothing," Clark muttered as the girls looked at each other and laughed. "Can we order? I'm starving."

Lex reached over to drop his hand on Clark's shoulder, letting it linger for a moment or two longer than necessary before he raised his other hand to signal their server.

Halfway through the meal Lex leaned closer to Clark and dropped his voice so only the two of them could hear. "We'll talk later," was all he said. Clark nodded slightly and went back to his food.

o o o o o

"Did you find something?" Clark and Lex were sitting in Lex's office, Lex with a drink in his hand and Clark's fingers tapping a nervous beat against his knee.

"The facility where I believe you were held has been destroyed." He hurried to continue at the look on Clark's face. "Not by me. It was gone long before I got there. Fire." It was the truth to a degree.

"Clark, there were traces of meteor rock found in the facility." Lex let his words hang between them for a moment. "I'm not asking you to tell me things that you aren't comfortable telling me, but anything you're willing to share may help find what or who we're looking for."

Clark was quiet, his attention focused on the buildings across the street, watching as people moved through hallways, talked on phones and sat behind computers or in boardrooms. Finally he turned back to Lex and opened his mouth to speak.

Lex held up a hand to stop him. "Wait. I'm not asking for your secrets, Clark."

"I know."

"And I'm not going to give you a speech about how I'm not the same person I was before."

"I already know you've changed, Lex."

"I just –"

"I'm not other people." Lex stopped talking. "The meteor rocks make me sick. They –" Clark paused and drew in a deep, shaking breath. "They could kill me. That's how they kept me captive."

"Whoever did this would have had to know that. It'll help narrow the field a little. Who knows, Clark?"

"Chloe and Pete. Before her memory was modified, Lana discovered what I can do." He kept his eyes down and his voice lowered. "Morgan Edge, and your father." He lifted his eyes to gauge Lex's reaction. "You knew. Once. Before Lionel – when you were in Belle Reve."

Lex nodded thoughtfully, hands folded on the table top as he leaned forward. "Clark, whoever's behind this will pay. I promise you that." They sat in silence for a few minutes.

"I'm strong." Lex's eyes met Clark's, but he didn't say anything. "I think you already knew that, though. I'm also fast."

"And bullet proof."

Clark nodded.

"I don't need your secrets to be your friend. Not anymore."

"That's why I want to give them to you."

"The cave in – there were meteor rocks down there. That's why you got hurt. And in the barn when I stabbed you and the chisel crumpled; that was because your skin can't be penetrated?"

"Chloe calls me the man of steel."

Lex laughed and leaned back in his chair. "Fitting. So you really did pull the roof off my Porsche."

"I'm sorry."

"Nothing to be sorry for."

"I didn't trust you when I should have."

"You were right not to trust me then."

"Was I right to trust you now?"

Lex regarded him for a long moment as his expression turned serious. He stood and came around his desk to stand in front of Clark. "I trust you with my life, Clark. And now you've trusted me with yours. That's a trust that I will never break."

Clark stood and took the hand Lex was extending to him, using it to pull him into an embrace. He moved back a few seconds later. "Come on, let's go get dinner."

"We just had lunch."

"Four hours ago."

"You're a bottomless pit."

"And you're still too skinny."

o o o o o

"Kent! My office. Now." There was a click in his ear as Perry hung up the phone. Clark's lips lifted in a quick smile as he saved what he was working on and pushed back from his desk. He arrived in Perry's office less than two minutes later.

"What took you so long, kid?" Perry didn't wait for an answer. "Shut the door and sit down. How old are you, Kent?"

"Twenty-four."

"How long have I known you?"

"About seven years I think."

"And I told you seven years ago that if you stopped messing around with the lunch menu, you'd get somewhere in this business, right?" Perry plowed over Clark's response. "Well, kid. I'm not the only one who thinks you've got talent. The man himself suggested it might be time to get you out of the society pages and let you loose somewhere else. Congratulations, Kent. You're being moved to the business section. Hand in whatever you're working on today; you start your new beat tomorrow."

"Thank you Mr. White."

"Cut the Mr. White crap, Kent, you're not a seventeen anymore. It's Perry."

Clark grinned. "Thanks Perry."

"Now get out of my office and don't make me regret this."

Clark was heading back downstairs when he ran into Chloe, Jimmy and Lois on their way to get him for lunch.

"You're in a good mood," Chloe greeted him.

"I just had a meeting with Perry."

"And you're still smiling?" Lois said.

"Lois, not even you can ruin my mood right now. I just got moved to business."

"Alright C.K., you ditched the gossip for some real news." Jimmy aimed a friendly punch at his shoulder.

"In that case, a celebratory lunch is definitely in order. Anywhere you want, Clark, it's our treat."

"Try not to eat like a horse, okay Smallville? I need to buy a new dress for a dinner with Oliver next week."

Clark laughed, already heading for the elevators. "I'll try not to eat like I was raised on a farm."

"And didn't I tell you he'd feel guilty enough to promote you? Ow! Chloe, what was that for?" She rubbed her side where Chloe's elbow had connected. "I was just saying."

o o o o o

"I thought I was done with this sort of thing," Clark grumbled as he adjusted his tie.

"This event is attended by a multitude of influential business people, Clark. And you," Chloe said, reaching up to tug the lapels of his jacket into place. "You cover the business news."

"It wasn't an assignment until Perry found out I had an invitation."

"That's what you get for talking to Lois. You know her voice carries."

"Up ten floors?"

"It is Lois. But hey, look at the bright side! You get me for company all night." She let go of his suit and stepped back, eyes skimming him up and down. "There, you look great."

"Thanks, Chloe. So do you."

Chloe grinned and did a little half-twirl before shaking her head. "I feel like I've been playing dress up."

Clark took her hand and lifted it, urging her to spin slowly once so that the soft sage material of her gown floated out around her legs. "I'm serious, Chloe. You look beautiful."

"Thanks, Clark." She smiled up at him before glancing at the clock on the hotel room wall. "We should go or we'll miss dinner." Twenty minutes later they were climbing out of a cab in front of the hotel where the Gotham City Charity Event was being held.

"Whoah," Chloe whispered, eyes growing wide at the sight of the red and gold ballroom. "Clark, this place is beautiful!"

They were greeted by an usher who led them to a table where Lana and Lex were already seated. Lex stood when they arrived and clapped a hand to Clark's shoulder and pressed a chaste kiss to Chloe's cheek.

"What was that for?" Chloe asked, cocking an eyebrow at him.

Lex bowed slightly at the waist. "Your beauty overcame me," he said. He managed to keep the grin off his face until Lana swatted his arm and Clark burst out laughing. Chloe mock-glared at him as he pulled her chair out for her.

"That better be your way of saying I look good tonight."

Lex leaned in and murmured in her ear. "You do look amazing. And I just wanted to see how you'd react." Chloe rolled her eyes and let him push the chair in as she sat.

Dinner had been cleared and Chloe had dragged Clark onto the dance floor twice before he caught sight of Bruce for the first time that evening. He was at the bar with a drink in hand and his back to the polished wood.

"Go on, try and get your story," Chloe said as the song ended, smiling up at him. He leaned down to kiss her cheek before making his way to the other side of the lavish room.

"I was wondering when you'd show up."

"Thought I'd come by and see about that lunch you still owe me."

"You didn't come by in hopes of a quote for your editor?"

Clark leaned in and dropped his voice so that only Bruce could hear. "I figured I could get a quote when we have lunch."

"There's always that possibility." Bruce shifted so that he was facing Clark with one elbow up on the bar. "And there's always the possibility you'll be too distracted to worry about a quote."

Clark's eyebrows rose. "I don't know, Mr. Wayne. I've got a pretty long attention span, and I'm not easily distracted."

Bruce smiled and tipped his drink up to his lips. "I'll be in Metropolis next week for a press conference regarding a new business venture. One that I hope will create a wealth of jobs for both Gotham and Metropolis along with a healthy economic boost for both cities." He set his drink down on the bar and met Clark's eyes. "You can quote me on that, Mr. Kent." Bruce was already walking away when Clark called out to him.

"Don't forget that lunch."

Bruce's lips quirked up into a smile before settling almost immediately back into the expression of casual boredom he'd been wearing all night. "I won't."

o o o o o

"It was good to see you relax tonight. Smile even. It's been a while since that's happened."

"I smile all the time, Chloe."

"But it never reaches your eyes." He shot a quick glance at her before going back to pulling off his tie. "Clark, we still have a conversation to finish. You've been running yourself to the edge of exhaustion for months, and you're not hiding it very well anymore. When was the last time you actually took care of yourself?" Chloe was seated on one of the queen-sized beds in her pajamas, make-up gone and hair still pulled up into the mass of curls she's worn it in for the evening.

"I have my abilities for a reason. I want to put them to good use."

"Clark, I understand that you want to help people, but you've got to look after yourself as well. And you can't keep doing what you're doing. Every time someone sees your face the description in the news gets a little more accurate."

"I can't just stop." Clark had stripped off his suit and pulled on loose flannel sleep pants and a white t-shirt.

"I'm not saying stop, I'm just saying be smart about it. Disguise yourself. Protect yourself. Clark, I don't want to lose you if someone finds out who you are."

He sat down beside her, sinking slightly into the soft bed. "What do you want me to do, wear a mask?"

"Why not? It works for other people. The Batman, for example. Oliver wears a hood and glasses. So does Bart. You need a costume."

"I hate costumes."

"Clark, just promise me you'll be more careful from now on."

He looked at her, her eyes wide and brow crinkled with worry. "I promise."