Kaleidoscope

by Lener

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in Smallville.

Chapter Five

"What? Why?" Chloe was stunned.

"An… accident at… the farm…" Clark could hardly get the words out.

"I'll drive you there," Chloe offered, and grabbed her car keys. She tore a piece of paper from her notebook which was lying on the table, then picked up a pen and scribbled a quick note to her father. She left it on the table in plain sight so he would see it.

 "Come on, let's go!" she added, then grabbed Clark by the wrist and pulled him out of the kitchen, into the living room. He somehow managed to move his legs, and quickly got into the car with Chloe.

Clark considered telling Chloe that he'd walk to the hospital (by super-speed, of course), but then she would probably think that he was crazy and did not care about his father. After all, who would walk rather than drive and get there faster?

By then Chloe was already in the driver's seat, revving up the engine. Clark realized he was still standing dumbly on the walkway.

"Clark! Get in here!" Chloe shouted, and Clark rushed towards the red and white 1961 Ford Falcon that Chloe drove. He slipped quickly into the front seat, then suddenly they were speeding away from Chloe's house as fast as the car could go.

Chloe made no attempt at conversation, and Clark was grateful for her quiet understanding. The silence in the car was not awkward, and Chloe's presence was comforting.

Leaning against the head rest, Clark suddenly had a flashback of the dream… the five tombstones in the graveyard… and the first he was seen was his father's. Was the dream coming true slowly? Clark shook his head to clear the thoughts and breathed in deeply and slowly. His father was not going to die. He would make sure of that.

*

"How is he?"

Chloe watched as Clark rushed forward to his mother and engulfed her in a big hug. Chloe had always known that Martha Kent was a tough, strong and intelligent woman. Her now tear-stained face was obvious that what happened to Mr. Kent had thoroughly shocked her.

"The doctor says I was in time, and that he'll be able to treat your father. I think he needs a blood transfusion," Mrs. Kent said. Clark clung to her desperately, as if afraid to let her go. "You need to sit down, Mrs. Kent," Chloe said, and walked over to Mrs. Kent. She slowly led her to one of the plastic chairs that lined the hospital's pristine corridor, and Clark's mother sank down in the chair. Clark seemed grateful for the gesture, because he gave Chloe a smile, than sat down beside his mother.

"What happened, exactly? Can you remember anything?" Chloe asked. From what she knew, Jonathan Kent was a careful and responsible man. It was not like him to get into nasty accidents around the farm. He was a firm believer in safety precautions around the heavy machinery that they used on the farm.

"He was in Clark's room… and he heard a noise and went up to… to investigate. I was in the kitchen… and there was a loud noise in Clark's bedroom. Something black came rushing past me… and Jonathan came down. He followed it to the barn… and I don't know what happened after that. I went into the barn and saw a metal rod with bloodstains on it… and I knew that… he had been knocked out by it. And… and… there was…" at this point Martha shook her head in disbelief, like she could never imagine it at all in her wildest dreams.

"What was it, mom?" Clark asked, voicing Chloe's question.

"The black… thing. And oh… it bent over him and began to… I couldn't see much but there was a green glow and your father was beginning to… to turn white. I screamed, of course… and the creature saw me and it fled. Then I brought… your father to the hospital," she finished the story, leaning back against the wall looking tired.

Clark caught Chloe's eye and they both exchanged a knowing look.

"Mrs. Kent, perhaps you'd better stay at my place for the night. Since your husband will be all right, you really should get a good sleep because two sick parents isn't going to be good for Clark," Chloe quickly said on a brainwave. Clark nodded encouragingly, taking his mother's hand and squeezing it in a reassuring way. Mrs. Kent gave a huge sigh and nodded.

"Great, I'll go call my father and tell him," Chloe walked off without another word.

As she rounded a corner, she bumped into someone.

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't see… Pete?" Chloe stared up into the concerned face of Pete Ross.

"Chloe! How's Clark's dad?" he asked.

"He's going to be fine. What are you doing here?" Chloe asked, stunned.

"I went over to your house just as you were leaving, so I kinda followed you to the hospital," Pete said, colouring a little.

"All for the greater good. Clark's mom is going to stay for the night at my house, while we have got some investigating to do. The weirdness strikes again," Chloe said mysteriously. Pete raised his eyebrows.

"They're back there, go say hi," Chloe gave her friend a shove, then went to the payphone to call her father. She pushed the coins into the slot, dialed her phone number and after a few rings, her father picked up the phone.

"Dad! You're home early!" she said.

"Yea, short day at work today," he answered, sounding tired.

Chloe quickly launched into her story of what happened, and her father agreed to her suggestion immediately. 

*

"Mom, are you feeling okay?" Clark looked at his matter as she sat on the chair, silent.

"Yes, Clark," she answered, but Clark could tell she was not. Quick footsteps sounded along the corridor and Clark, barely looking up, said, "Chloe, I think…"

"Whoa… since when did I become a girl?" a strong voce- a strong male voice answered, making Clark jerk his head up. His other best friend Pete met his gaze, startling him considerably. What was Pete doing here?

"Pete! Not that I don't appreciate you coming, but what are you doing here?" Clark asked, standing up.

"I went over to Chloe's place and I followed Chloe's car just as she left the house," Pete explained, "how's your father?"

"He should be fine," Clark said, though he still felt the faint prickle of worry deep in his heart. It would be his entire fault if his father died. Clark could have saved him from the… thing. The dream of the tombstones in the graveyard came flashing back to Clark, and he tried to shake it out of his mind.

Just then, Chloe came back, holding a Styrofoam cup of hot coffee, which she promptly gave to Clark's mother and told her to drink slowly.

"I'll drive you to my house after you finish it. I informed my father and he has made the necessary arrangements," Chloe placed a hand on Martha's shoulder, and it seemed to radiate comfort because his mother gave Chloe a smile.

Clark felt grateful that Chloe was around. He'd always though of it as a wonder that she knew exactly what to do and say in moments when Clark felt inexperienced. He also noted that Chloe did not seem to be surprised by Pete's sudden appearance, which meant that they had probably met when Pete was coming in.

The next minute Clark's mother was done, and they all got up. Clark did one last check with the doctor to make sure that his father was in a stable condition, then they left the hospital and went to Chloe's car.

Chloe slid into the driver's seat, and told Pete to sit in the front seat so that Clark could look after his mother at the back. All of them did so, and very soon Chloe was zipping through the dark streets of Smallville, the cool wind caressing their cheeks and skin through the open windows.

*

"Dad?" Chloe called as she pushed open the door. Behind her stood Pete, and behind him Clark was holding onto his mother for dear life, as if afraid to lose her. In spite of the situation, Chloe had to smile. Clark loved his parents dearly, and that sort of brought out a gentle side in him.

Gabe Sullivan emerged from the living room and came to open the door. Chloe shook off the warm fuzzy feeling that grew inside of her whenever she thought of Clark, then stepped aside to let the others into her house first.

Chloe watched as her father came out from the kitchen, balancing a tray with four steaming mugs of hot chocolate on it. It was time to put her plan into action.

"Dad, I'm going to run that errand you asked me to," Chloe said as she got up from the couch she had been sitting on. Clark and Pete both stood up with her.

"What errand?" her father asked.

"You know…" Chloe gave him a death glare.

"Ah…" he said.

"This late in the night?" Mrs. Kent put in, sipping her hot chocolate mildly.

"Erm, we'll accompany her," Clark said, and Pete nodded.

"If it gets too late they're welcome to sleep over at my place. Tomorrow's a Saturday anyway," Pete added.

"All right then," Mrs. Kent relaxed considerably, and Chloe's father gave them a wink.

"Just take care, you three!" he said.

And so, with pasted, innocent smiles, Chloe, Clark and Pete headed out of the Sullivan home and straight for the Kent Farm Estate.

Author's Note: Chloe, Clark and Pete are going to do a little investigation of their own to see what they can kind about this mysterious blood-sucking villain… dude. What do you think of this chapter? Please review!!! Look below, coz I've also decided to reply to my reviewers! The thing is, I hope they aren't what I label "one-time reviewers" who review only once and never read the story again *cries*. LOL. J/k…

Thanks to…

smallgirl- Hey! Thanks for reviewing Kaleidoscope! I'm glad you enjoy it except for the Whitney part. Hmm… from my point of view he's just a very mean person, but I understand your view so the next time, should I write about Whitney, I could try to put him in a nicer position. I hope you'll like that!

Calty- Hey! Thanks for reviewing my story! Hahaha! I don't like Lana at all either, although I thought she was nice from the start. Then when I became a Chloe/Clark fan I totally hated Lana coz she was TOO nice. Well, I hope you keep reading!

Suz- Hey! Thanks for liking/reviewing my fic! Lol… I'm glad you feel the same about Chloe being right when she told Lana off. I just had to add that bit to the story! Well, this should be an enough update for you so far, right? Haha… hope you keep reading Kaleidoscope!

smallvillecsifreak- Hey! Thanks for reviewing my story! Oh well, now you know what happened to Jonathan Kent! Haha… I hope you keep reading!

….- Yo! Thanks for reviewing Kaleidoscope. I can't figure out if you're the same dude as '…' but anyway, yea, I wanted a plot in my new Smallville story not just as you put it "endless will-they-get-together-fluff"! Haha… although it was pretty hard to come up with a villain that wasn't already in the Smallville episodes. They haven't screened Season 2 where I am. Such injustice… Hehe… Lana isn't bad. She's horrible! Okay I'm kidding but you see, Lana isn't bad in this story… her help is just taken in the wrong way, that's all! Well, hope you keep reading! 

SPECIAL NOTE (IF READ) TO SPUNKYAUTUMN:

Hello!!!!! I've been reading your reviews and they're all being replied on the latest chapter, which is chapter 10! So it isn't in any of these chapters yet! You can skip on down to chap 10 to read my replies or just quickly read the story till you get there! Either way, thanks for reviewing and reading!