Disclaimer: don't own anyone, just borrowing. No money from this, or much else.
More Than Friends, Less Than Lovers
He was in the loft. He was always in the loft. Lana had once jokingly called it his Fortress of Solitude. It had stuck. Clark was about the only one who didn't call it that. Even his parents joked about it sometimes. He was stargazing, looking through his telescope at the night sky, searching. He always looked like he was searching for something. She just wished he'd hurry up and find it.
"Hey." He knew she was there, of course. The reason for the Fortress part was that it was impossible to sneak up on this barn. He could tell by the squeak the boards made who was coming up the stairs. Clark was like that.
"Hey yourself." She settled down on the couch he kept up here, dropping her book bag and setting her digital camera down on the table.
"Get any good pictures for the Torch?" Small talk, as always, began the talk. Just small little ways of saying, I still care.
"Nah. Nothing tonight. Not even any crop circles." A mutual joke, ever since she figured it out. His "big secret."
"I've been busy tonight." The mutual reply to the joke.
"So, how've things on the farm been going?"
"Alright, I guess. Dad's been running me kind of hard, ever since you figured everything out."
"Sorry."
"Hey, I didn't say I blamed you."
"Yeah, well, you know me. Just can't let anything go unknown."
"How's Lana?"
"Alright. The Talon's taking up a lot more of her time, now that school's out and Nell's in Metropolis. I think she crashed there last night."
"Wouldn't be the first time."
"Nope. I know she's going to be working late tonight."
"Yeah, she told me."
"When?"
"I took her out on a picnic today, during her lunch break."
"Where'd you go?"
"Cooper's Field."
"Not exactly the garden spot of the world."
"It was close to town."
"Short lunch again?"
"Has she ever taken a long one?"
"Once or twice."
"Yeah, when she had a reason to."
Silence. He turned from leaning on the edge of the open upper barn door and dropped into the hammock he kept up here for nights he just didn't want to sleep inside. After all, it's not like anything could really hurt him.
"Clark, you know she's over Whitney, right?"
"Of course I do, Chloe. But, well…"
"She's not with you."
"Yeah. And we seem to be drift apart."
"Maybe she's afraid?"
"Maybe?"
"She's afraid. Your friendship means a lot to her and she's worried about screwing it up by falling for you."
"We didn't do that badly."
"Oh, yeah we did. Remember that year of lying, semi-avoidance, and hateful words?"
"I kind of meant besides that." He looks down at his feet, shuffling them a bit. It's kind of cute, really.
"Clark, we came out alright in the end, yes. But with us, it was different. Part of me knew that you'd always put Lana first."
"Chloe…"
"No, let me say this. I liked you Clark, a lot. Hell, I still do, but I didn't love you. I never have, in retrospect. But you were safe. Like Pete, only with less machismo." A laugh, shared between friends. "I always figured, why not fall for Clark Kent? He's strong, dependable; even if he has lousy timing; and he genuinely likes you."
"Chloe, I'm sorry for leaving you at Spring Formal…"
"Clark, I'm not done. I genuinely did like you. Do like you. But I don't love you. I could have grown to love you very easily. Probably too easily. But in the end, I knew I couldn't compete with Lana, and I've accepted that. You two belong together, and I don't begrudge either of you that. As for Spring Formal, I have to admit I'd have probably kicked your butt if you hadn't gone out to save Lana. It's just so…you."
"Chloe, I've always liked you too, but, well…"
"I'm not Lana?"
"That sounds so horrible, though."
"Clark, the entire situation is kind of like a bad Greek Tragedy. Let's face it, between the love triangle, the over protective father figure, the super strength and Lex we could give Homer a run for his money."
"You forgot all the meteor rock mutants."
"Icing on the cake."
A smile between friends, sharing in a joke.
"So how'd your dad take your plans for tonight?"
Silence.
"Clark? You did tell you parents, didn't you?"
"Well, they're kind of in Metropolis right now…"
"You're dad is going to have a fit."
"Well, he needs to learn to start trusting me to make these choices."
"Clark, it's your Dad. He's going to shot you for this! And he knows it won't hurt you, so I mean he will really get a gun and shot you!"
"Chloe, no he won't."
"Yeah, but only because your mom'll insist that you try and talk it out first."
"What makes you think they're even going to find out?"
"Remember that time you were going to have a quiet party and you weren't going to get into trouble?"
"Right. Thanks, I really wanted to remember that."
"On a lighter note, how do you think it's going to go?"
"That's a lighter note?"
"It doesn't involve your parents."
"True. I don't know. I have absolutely no idea how she's going to react."
"She seemed to take Byron fairly well, and she's known you far longer."
"Yeah, but Byron's still…well…"
"Human?"
"Yeah."
"Clark, Lana Lang is many things, but somehow I don't think you being from another world is going to throw her that much. True, it will probably send her into a fit of buts and huhs, but still, I think she'll come around eventually."
"Eventually?"
"Within a year, max."
"Thanks Chloe."
"Hey, just doing my part."
They sit together for a while in friendly silence.
"Chloe?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you ever regret us?"
"How do you mean?"
"Do you ever regret that we tried to be more than friends?"
"Clark, we are more than friends. But, no, I don't. Even though I've always suspected that it wouldn't work, I treasure this new bond between us."
"Even through all the pain we've been through?"
"We wouldn't be who we are right now with out that pain."
"Very philosophical."
"Thank you."
"Chloe…"
"No Clark, I'm not sorry that we tried, and I'm not sorry that we didn't work out that way. Well, just a little. I'll always be a little upset that it didn't work out, but something much better came out of it."
"I just wanted to be sure."
More silence. A true mark of their new comfort with each other; they don't need to fill the air with meaningless words.
"So, are you sure about this?"
"Not really, but it's not like we can ever be together with this hanging over us."
"Yeah."
"So, where's Pete tonight, anyway?"
"Hot date. Erica."
"Again?"
"I think they're getting kind of serious."
"How serious?"
"Well, he's been going out with her on and off for over a year now."
"On and off."
"Still, for Pete that's a hell of a record."
"True."
"Clark?"
"Yeah?"
"Have you ever, well, thought about Whitney?"
"All the time. I'm worried about him, in all honesty, and I'm worried about what he's going to be like when he comes back."
"You mean when he comes back and finds you and Lana together?"
"Yeah. Just before he left, Whitney asked to watch out for Lana while he was gone."
"When? Wait, at Spring Formal? That's what you two were talking about?"
"Yeah. He's really not that bad, he's just so…"
"Single minded?"
"Yeah."
A glance at the watch, and a smile.
"Well, Mr. Kent, I believe you should get moving. Lana should be leaving the Talon soon, and you could be a gentleman and drive her out here."
"Yeah."
Both stand, she gathers up her bag and camera.
"You know, part of me really wants to stick around take some pictures of this for the Torch. I can see the headline now. Star-Crossed Lovers Finally Come to Their Senses."
"Chloe, I think there're going to be more important things to put in the Torch when school starts back up."
"I don't know, this'll be the talk of the town for a while."
"Chloe…"
"Right, going home now. Good luck tonight, Clark. Just remember, take it slow. This is a lot to process. Even for her."
"I know. Good night, friend."
"Good night, friend."
END