Chloe and Pete decided to head to a rave, and Emmeline gladly declined that high school experience. Apparently that was a good thing because some kid named Travis ended up getting himself killed.
And for some odd reason, Pete had been acting quite differently since that night.
"Hey," Chloe said to Lana as she and Emmeline walked into the Talon. "I didn't hear you leave this morning."
"Well, I had to be here first thing," Lana told her.
"You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were avoiding me."
"Don't take it personally. It's just how I cope."
"Look, I don't want to be one of those annoying people that says I'm here if you need to talk, but…I am."
"We both are," Emmeline smiled.
"I appreciate it," Lana said to them.
"Listen, if you don't feel like talking, um, I thought maybe we could go to Metropolis tomorrow and do some serious shopping," Chloe called to the back where Lana had gone. "My dad even said that he would join in on the conspiracy and get us out of school early."
"Unfortunately, I can't go because my parents would kill me for ditching school," Emmeline said.
Lana came back through the door. "Ah, thanks. And I'd love to, but, you know, I already have plans with Clark."
"Oh," Chloe said, slightly caught off-guard. "Uh, what kind of plans?"
"Well, um, he asked me out on a date."
"Wow. I thought you guys were giving up on the mating dance."
"Yeah, yeah, me too."
"But you still said yes."
Both Lana and Emmeline could sense Chloe's uneasiness. "Look, if this is gonna be too weird for you two—"
"No! My feelings for Clark are so ancient, they're—they're fossilized. Uh, seriously, you should—you should go for it."
"Yeah, even if I did still have feelings for Clark, I'm not exactly ready for a relationship anyway," Emmeline put in.
"Are you sure?" Lana asked.
"Lana, does it really matter how we feel?" Chloe said. "I mean, if we were in your position, we'd do the exact same thing. Don't let us be your excuse."
"Okay. Um, I'm glad we cleared the air."
"Me too. I'll see you tonight."
"Okay."
Chloe and Emmeline left the Talon and started heading to the Torch.
"Well…we made a deal," Emmeline said hesitantly.
"I know. Nice cover-up by the way."
"Thanks, you too. Ugh, why does Lana have to be so nice and get all the cool guys?"
"Well, to be fair, she's had her fair share of meteor freak-ness too."
"I suppose."
They made it to the Torch and began working on the memorial story revolving around Travis's death.
"Hey, Chloe, Em," Clark said walking into the office. "Have you seen Pete today? I think he skipped school."
"Well, I asked him to help us with the memorial issue, but he totally blew us off," Chloe answered. "Why?"
"He's just acting strange. I think Travis's death really got to him."
"Pete did try and save him, but he just couldn't get there in time. Maybe, you know, he feels guilty."
"He definitely isn't acting that way."
"Different people deal with grief in different ways. Um, any big plans for the weekend?"
Clark just looked at her and shrugged and smiled nervously. Chloe glared at him and turn back to her file cabinet. Emmeline slightly shook her head. Clark had really just dug a deep hole for himself there.
"Do you know if they found any drugs in Travis's system?" Clark asked, ignoring how Chloe had looked at him.
"The autopsy report was inconclusive, but they did find a small puncture wound in the back of his neck and his adrenal gland was unusually enlarged."
"Adrenaline does give you a rush. Maybe that's why he jumped."
"Yeah, but he wasn't the only one. Two other kids at the rave, one from Granville, the other one from Smallville Community College, they both turned up dead. One took a swan dive into an empty pool and the other one wrapped his Corolla around a tree. Same puncture wounds, same enlarged adrenal gland, and same extreme behavior."
"It's like they all had a death wish. What do the police think?"
"Somebody may have been sticking them with a new designer drug. You think they got Pete?"
"I don't know. But I know I need to get him to a doctor. I'll see you both later."
Chloe turned to Emmeline after he left. "He totally lied to me without even using words. I didn't even know that was possible."
"In his defense, he probably just doesn't want to hurt your feelings."
"Well, if this date leads somewhere, they can't just hide it forever. Ugh, I am so sick of everyone trying to 'protect' me."
"I understand. But it's nice that he cares."
The next day, Clark grabbed Chloe and Emmeline and the three of them went to the caves to try to figure out what was going on with Pete.
"Whatever happened to Pete started in this cave," Clark said as they walked inside.
"Well, have you gotten him to a doctor yet, or is he as needle-phobic as you are?" Chloe joked.
"Em and I haven't been able to find him. My dad called the Rosses. They haven't been seen him all day."
"So what exactly are we looking for?"
"I don't know. A certain reporter friend of mine always said to explore all options."
Chloe smiled broadly. "In that case, we'll look over here."
"Okay. I'll check out the other chamber."
Clark left while Chloe and Emmeline went over to examine a crack in one of the cave walls. Chloe took some pictures of it, and then slowly stuck her hand in it.
"Chloe, are you sure that's a good idea?" Emmeline asked.
"Ugh!" Chloe exclaimed, yanking her hand out of the wall. She had touched something slimy and gross.
"Told you." Chloe looked inside the crack to see if there was anything else in it. "See anything?"
"Hey!" The two girls whipped around to find an older man with glasses looking at them angrily. "This cave is off-limits. Why don't you find somewhere else to make out?"
Suddenly, Chloe gasped and rubbed the back of her neck.
"You all right?" the man asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Chloe looked at the man pointedly and took off her jacket. "As for your snide remark, people haven't made out in this cave since the 20th century. Now back off."
Emmeline eyed her friend, wondering what had caused this sudden change.
"Hey, you're Frederick Walden, the linguist," Clark said as he came back. "You wrote that book."
"I've written many books," Dr. Walden said smugly.
"Did Lex Luthor hire you?"
"Thanks to you, Clark," Lex said as he entered the cave as well. Emmeline took a small step closer to Clark, still unnerved in Lex's presence. "I'm counting on Professor Walden to translate these pictographs for us. It'll help the preservation effort."
"Hey, Rule One—no guided tours," Dr. Walden told Lex.
"They're friends of mine, Professor, and I didn't realize you'd accepted my offer."
"I have, but we do things on my terms, and I don't allow anybody except for my staff on a work site."
"With all due respect, Professor, I was the one who found the caves," Clark interjected.
"I don't care if you discovered the Shroud of Turin, kid." He turned to Lex. "If you're unhappy with my method, I can take the first flight to Chile."
Lex looked at Clark. "I'm sorry, Clark."
"Lex, you can't do this," Clark insisted.
"The man's one of the most renowned linguists in the world. If that's the way he works, we have to respect that."
"Hey!" Dr. Walden yelled to Chloe who had climbed up one of the walls. "You get down from there!"
"Come on, Chloe, let's go," Clark said deflated.
Chloe coyly stepped down from the wall, acting like she was drunk. Emmeline looked over at Clark with a confused expression.
"What are you smiling at?" Dr. Walden demanded. He attempted to grab her camera from her. "I want those photographs."
"Take your own," Chloe said, her expression turning stern.
"I'm serious, young lady."
"You're the cunning linguist. Why don't you translate this?" She cursed the Professor, and Emmeline's widened eyes looked at Clark as Chloe walked past them.
Emmeline had a really bad feeling that what had happened to Pete was happening to Chloe.
Later that day, Emmeline was heading to the Torch office when she ran into Clark.
"Hey, have you seen Pete yet?" she asked him.
"Yeah…and it wasn't good. He's getting violent. If I don't do something fast, he's going to get himself killed."
"In that case, I'll help as much as I can."
Clark looked concerned for her, knowing how she felt about his best friend.
They walked into the office to find Chloe in some serious lip-lock with a guy Emmeline had never seen before. She turned around at the sound of their footsteps.
"Don't worry, guys. We're done." She went to her desk, and the guy followed her.
"Can I get your number?" he asked.
"Why? The thrill is gone."
The guy looked at Clark and Emmeline dejectedly before leaving the office.
"Who was that?" Emmeline asked.
"I don't know. I met him in the hall, thought he was cute, asked him if he wanted to do some investigative reporting."
Clark's brow furrowed. "Chloe, what's going on? Are you okay?"
"Oh, Clark, don't tell me you're jealous. I thought you only had eyes for Lana. Oh, I heard about your date. But of course it's not like you have the guts to tell me."
"Is that what this is about?"
"Don't flatter yourself, Clark. I just want to explore my options, take a risk. So what can I do for you?" She began licking a lollipop seductively, and from the looks of it, Clark was really uncomfortable by that action.
"Remember you said there was this weird hole in the back of Travis's neck? I was wondering if it could be from some kind of parasite?"
"What orifice did you pull that one from?" Chloe smirked as she crashed down on the couch.
"That's kind of harsh, isn't it?"
"Come on, Clark. It's not like you hit the mute button on your skepticism when I take a logic leap."
"It's just a hunch. Travis's adrenal gland was abnormal. Maybe the parasite was feeding off his adrenaline, making him want more and more."
"Hey, Sherlock, don't you think they would've found the parasite during the autopsy?"
"Not if it burrowed out of that hole after he died."
"All right, so what do you need me for?"
"I can't get within 50 feet of Pete. I figured you could talk to him." Chloe just stared at him. "Chloe, I'm sorry that you're angry with me about this date. I thought we knew where we stood with each other. But right now the only thing I can think about is Pete."
"Sure, Clark. I'll do it for you."
"Just get him to your house. I'll see you there."
"It's a date."
Clark looked at her uncomfortably before he and Emmeline left the office.
"No offense to Chloe, but Pete may be more willing to talk to me," Emmeline told Clark. "If I can find him, I'll see if I can make him see sense."
"Just be careful."
"Pete would never hurt me."
Emmeline looked around all day, but she never found Pete. What was worse was that she couldn't find Clark and Chloe either and she was starting to get really worried.
When she did find them…she wished she hadn't.
She walked in to find Clark and Chloe kissing, and a heartbroken Lana watching. Chloe had some crazy black highlights on with a ton of eyeliner on her face. She looked like an anti-Chloe.
"L-Lana, this is not what it looks like," Clark said quickly as he zipped up his jacket.
Lana furiously walked past them and when she turned around, Emmeline saw several tears on her face.
"Yeah, it is, Lana," Chloe said smugly. "It's exactly what it looks like. Oh, and guess what? Clark told me everything. And I mean everything."
For the first time in their friendship, Emmeline wanted to smack her best friend on the face.
"Lana, I can explain," Clark said.
Lana shook her head and went into the back room. As Clark bounded after Chloe, Emmeline went into the back room where Lana was sobbing.
"If you're coming in here to tell me to go and listen to him, don't even bother!" she cried.
"I wasn't going to say that," Emmeline said gently. "I just wanted to be your shoulder to cry on."
Lana tearfully came over to her and sobbed in her embrace as Emmeline just held her, knowing that that was the best thing to do at the moment.
"Thanks, Em. You're a good friend."
"I'm sorry you've had such a rough time lately. I'm going to see if I can figure out what's going on."
Emmeline raced outside and saw Clark on the ground. She would've gone to him, but for the first time in a couple days, she finally saw Pete.
"Pete!" she called running up to him. "Thank goodness you're here!"
"Hey, Em," he said with a smirk. He went up to her and put his arms around her waist, but she pushed him away, not fully ready for such a display of affection.
"Pete, please. I really need to get you to a doctor. If I don't, you could die."
Pete and Chloe laughed. "He's gotten to you too," Pete said. "I'm fine, Em. Now come with us. We're going to jump the gorge."
"You're going to what?! Pete, you're going to kill yourself! I'm begging you. Come with me to the hospital. It'll do you good."
"I said no, Em. Are you coming or not?"
Emmeline tugged on his arm. "Pete, don't do this!"
"Back off!"
Pete's arm swung out and smacked Emmeline across the face, sending her sprawling onto the ground. She looked up at him in disbelief as tears pooled in her eyes.
Chloe looked at her stone-faced before they both got in the car and drove off. Lana came out and tossed a bucket of water on Clark's face.
"Lana," he said as he came to. "Where's Chloe and Pete?"
"I don't know. And to be honest, I really don't care."
"The gorge," Emmeline said. "Pete said they were going to jump the gorge."
"Em, are you alright?" Lana asked, noticing the mark on her cheek.
When they both turned back around, Clark was gone.
Thanks to Clark, Chloe and Pete finally made it to the hospital and the parasite was removed.
"Chloe," Emmeline smiled as she stepped in her best friend's room.
"Is it just me, or are we in hospital rooms too often?"
Emmeline giggled. "It's good to have you back."
"I don't remember anything. Is this what it was like when you got sprayed with the Nicodemus?"
"Yep. So I know that it's not much fun going nuts and not remembering how nuts."
"Em…what happened to your face?"
Emmeline's hand gently rubbed across her swollen cheek. "It's nothing."
"Please tell me I didn't do that."
"No, you didn't. Really, Chloe, I'm fine."
They talked for a little longer before Clark stepped in, so Emmeline bid her good-byes. She was on her way out when she heard her name, and realized she had just passed by Pete's room.
She took a deep breath and walked in.
"Hey, Em. Look, I don't know exactly what happened, but I'm sorry for anything I said or did."
"I know," Emmeline said with no expression written on her face.
Pete noticed her red cheek and had a sickening feeling he was responsible for that. "You have to understand that I would never do anything to intentionally hurt you."
"It wasn't you."
"But, Em…"
"I have to go."
Emmeline quickly left his hospital room and headed home, not knowing what this meant for her and Pete now.
