Author's note: hey guys…I'm back. The saga continues. Sorry for delay, but my time off was shortened by the need to get a job ;-). And a messed up computer. But you don't need to know. Dodge-girl should be thanked for offering to beta-ing…but I was just too damn impatient .

"Truly, to tell lies is not honorable;
but when the truth entails tremendous ruin,
To speak dishonorably is pardonable."

- Sophocles

 Chloe sat at her home computer, her eyes glazed over from staring at the monitor for so long without any decent results. She didn't exactly know what she was looking for, yet again. So often lately she'd been tempted to spend some spare moments on-line, trying to get a handle on Smallville's resident rich-kid.

 Perhaps some part of her was aware this kind of background research was a little too cold for her; that maybe for once she should leave the reporter behind, and act like the friend she should be to Clark. But this afternoon had gotten rid of any last qualms she had about researching Lex's friend. Tonight she wouldn't restrict herself to a guilty fleeting glance at the on-line papers' business sections.

 Now she knew that Clark really was doing what she always feared; moving on. He was growing up, losing that innocence…and with it, he seemed to have lost the need for her. For the role she played; he was the naïve albeit charming country boy, and she was the quirky, sassy reporter-in-the-making from the big city.

 But now, he had Lex to introduce him to high society…and god, she could only imagine how much a guy like Clark would be amazed and impressed with that kind of lifestyle. The poor guy had spent his entire life here. And, while Smallville certainly had its moments of Weird lately, the vast majority of his life was just working on that farm, going to classes, and – until Lex had come along - hanging around with the same two friends .

 So what did she have to offer him that they didn't?

 It was that thought that had led to the last three quarters of an hour of wading through search engines and articles.

  She had to smile sadly through her frustration at one point when she found herself thinking how much quicker the research would go if she had Clark to help her…He was so fantastic at finding things on-line, she often wondered why she so rarely saw him actually on the computer. Once they'd been discussing  a future 'Torch' story vaguely ; she'd left the room for no more than three minutes and there he was, on her return, with the information needed. Just the goofy grin and a faint shrug "I type fast."

 The memory brought a smile and a shaking of the head at how cute and weird he could be.

 But then she remembered the Clark she'd seen this afternoon, and that sinking feeling came; the one that tells you the end of an era is coming, and that you've known for longer than you'll admit.

 Chloe swallowed hard and sat up straighter in her chair. There it was. What she'd been looking for.

It wasn't so much about Lex now, so of course it wasn't in the business sections. The Daily Planet's weekly column of the latest gossip of the socialites was infamous for telling things like it is. The reporter was anonymous of course, as all the ones who have a tendency to really get under people's skin are.

 The photograph wasn't from the party, but apparently still held much of the Metropolis 'brat pack'. There, caught mid-laughter, standing somewhat nervously among her peers was the girl Clark chose over her. Chloe knew it instantly, just by looking at her.

 She was a couple of years older, blonde not brunette, better clothes, but still : she was Lana.  She was the Prom Queen. Her manner and style were innocent enough, but this high-school student knew she would be just as aware as Lana of how she looked, and what her affect would be on guys like Clark and Whitney.

  After a beat she scrolled down the page to see in full the article accompanying the picture.

 " Word has it that the young daughter of  pharmaceutical giant Victor Rosenberg  is entering the elite set of Metropolites entertained by, among others, Lex Luthor : my sources at Lex's little soirée this weekend tell me she received very special attention from the host, and was even seen being introduced to his closest confidantes…we ask just what is the young Ella's involvement with the millionaire's son: business, pleasure, or dare we say, both?"

  Even alone, with no-one to watch her reaction,  Chloe tried to put on a brave face. She calmly closed down the windows, shut down the computer, and sat there for a second, looking around her quiet room.

 By the time Clark rang the doorbell, she was having to hurriedly brush away the tears.

~ ~ ~

 When he was standing on her familiar doorstep again, he was overcome with a terrible guilt again.  It wasn't just the way he had yelled at her earlier: although that was a damn good part of it. But there was also a good dose of self-loathing flung in there for this simple fact : all this had come because he hadn't kept his cool. He'd brought this on himself.  And still, he kept thinking was that he wanted to be back with Lex. He felt like there was so much to talk about and discuss…

 Not to mention the fact that he was still pretty tired, and putting on another act was always irritating, no matter how much he'd got used to it.

  Out of the corner of his eye he thought he saw a movement in Chloe's upstairs window. Curious, he concentrated and looked again with his X-ray vision… Chloe was standing just away from the window, hand to her mouth as if shocked he was there. Frowning, He watched as she suddenly dashed over to the mirror, fixed her hair and dabbed at her eyes…she'd been crying…

 Oh boy.

 Guess a quick apology along the 'hey, its me, so I'm a dork, forgive me?'  line wasn't going to cut it. He could really do with some words of wisdom from Lex right now. 

 Suddenly the front door was pulled open, and there was Chloe, a small brave smile, and a supposedly surprised attitude.

" Clark! Well this is…" she seemed to search for a word for a second, before finishing,"Unexpected."

And that's when the tension settled in, heavy and very very unfamiliar.

Unfortunately, Clark found himself falling into his regular routine. Hands in pockets, shoulders in a kind of permanent shrug, and a nervous apologetic smile on his face.

" Yeah, well, my dad always told me not to let the sun set on an argument".

 That was met by raised eyebrows and a glance behind him and the darkened street. He half-turned to follow her gaze, and grinned a little wider.

 "Figure of speech." He offered lamely.

All that got was a patient smile, and sad eyes as Chloe stood there in the doorway, looking up at him.

 His smile faded into a serious look of regret as he got a better sense of the mood she was in. He self-consciously cleared his throat.

 "Okay. So, this morning I..wasn't myself. And I'm sorry for yelling at you. I am."

She was watching him in a way she'd never done before, and it unnerved him a little. While he'd never wanted to ask himself why, he knew that when Chloe looked at him, in her eyes there was always an amusement, or a brightness. He felt like he could do no wrong in her eyes : and told himself that that was what friendship was.  It was knowing someone and caring for them regardless.

 But now this friend was looking at him like a stranger…like she was trying to figure out who he was.

 Then after a second, some warmth seemed to come back into her expression, just a little. She moved out to join him outside, pulling the door to behind her.

 "I know you are Clark." She said. "And I forgive you for…well,whatever that was earlier. Hell, we're all allowed our own little outburst of teen angst now and again." She sure remembered the occasional evening of snapping at her dad a bit after witnessing Clark ogling at Lana , yet again...

 He watched her carefully, sensing that there was more to come.

 "But, Clark, its not so much how you said it, as what you said."

 "Isn't that normally the other way round?"

  She was wrapping her arms around her now against the night air, and she nervously adjusted her weight from one foot to the other.

 "Its just… you said that I don't know you anymore-"

 "I'm sorry, like I said, I was tired, I wasn't quite my-"

 She held up a hand to stop him.

 "No, see, that's the problem Clark. I don't want you to stand here and lie to me now…you've never done that."

  She missed the brief shift of the eyes at that, and continued with feeling:

 "I need you to be honest with me. I know something happened at that party. I know that…you got involved with someone, didn't you?"

There was no way. No way she could know. Be careful what you say…

 He couldn't hide the 'deer in headlights' look on his face, though.

 "What..ah..I mean, why-?"

Now she was smiling at him in that slightly amused way again.

 " Oh come on. My sweet and innocent…friend…disappears for a night, and next day he's yelling at me saying I've got no idea who he is anymore?  You honestly think I wouldn't want to know what the hell you were talking about?"

 He looked around, his nervousness clear, but hopefully his complete panic wasn't obvious.

 But one thing he'd learnt this past year was if you couldn't come up with an explanation for something weird, people would sooner or later supply their own: Chloe was going to say her piece.

"I can't believe this Clark… I mean, God, we all wanted you to get over the Lana-infatuation. You have no idea how much… And there were times I thought that maybe we…" a quick hopeful glance at him and his face registered no understanding. She moved on quickly, covering her disappointment. "But you were that desperate for America's sweetheart huh, Clark?  God, I at least thought you…cared for Lana as a person. But now, I mean, what? You just go for the next substitute hottie presented to you?"

 He tried to suppress his sigh of relief, and instead hurriedly tried to follow her line of thought. What was this about a substitute Lana?

 Chloe was really worked up now, pacing back and forth, and speaking with that same earnestness he'd seen that afternoon. She was confused, and she seemed...so sad...

 "I mean, tell me I'm wrong, Clark- tell me Lex introduced you to "Miss Ella Rosenberg – smiling debutante" weeks, or, or  months ago…tell me you've been dating, getting to know each other in secret,  hell - tell me you're AIM buddies! Just don't tell me you had a one night stand with a girl you just met. Please."

  There were tears in her eyes, and at that moment Clark absolutely hated himself for feeling so relieved.

 "Okay. I won't tell you that."

A lump came to his throat then at the expression on her face. She looked like her world had just been pulled out from under her. And hey, did he know how that felt.

 "Ella is…a friend of Lex's. That's all, I swear. I said maybe two words to her. I left before she did-"

She was shaking her head now, completely shell-shocked that he could stand there and lie to her so easily, so convincingly.

 "I talked to your mom Clark." she interjected bitterly. "She said you got home in the morning. Please don't lie to me."

Dammit. But he was trying to tell the truth...

 "No, I-"

He tried to stop her and reached for her arm as she ignored him, striding back into the house. The problem with super-strength is it made him so hesitant in emotionally-charged situations: he was so wary of hurting her, that she easily brushed passed him.

 "Chloe!"

 She half-turned in the doorway, seeing him standing there bathed in the light from her hall.

"I'll see you at school Clark." She called back hoarsely."We …we need to talk about Pete's party.." she pulled herself together, and turned fully towards him.

" But we are not talking about this. Ever again."

 With that Clark was shut out in the dark.

TBC – promise!

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