Chapter 5: Lex the Hacker
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There was a rude honk outside the house and Chloe rolled her eyes. With a fleeting goodbye to her father she grabbed her bag and headed out the door.
"Nice work Lex, do you treat all woman this way?" Chloe asked as she clambered into his Porsche. The scent of the plush leather seat almost made up for his lack of charm.
"No, not all woman. Just the ones who impersonate florists to gain access to my home, then plant smoke bombs to create a diversion in order to read my *dead* fathers last will and testament."
"Well I'm sure the rest of the female population finds you irresistible." The girl said dryly.
"We're not on a date Chloe, if we were then you'd be seeing a very different side of me. I'll go as far as to say you look nice, don't expect anything more."
Chloe looked down at her black pants and light blue sleeveless top, "Wow, Lex Luthor thinks I look nice, I can't wait to go home and write this in my diary." Chloe's voice dripped with sarcasm. She glanced at Lex's casual tan suit, but didn't bother commenting about it. No use in inflating the man's ego further.
Lex let out a sigh, "Can we be civil for an evening? Besides, I lied to Gabe for you, you owe me."
"Fine, I guess I'm sorry." She said breezily.
"I accept your heartfelt apology." Lex added.
Chloe hit him on the shoulder, releasing a laugh from the man. "Why are you so defensive?"
"Why are you so antagonizing?"
"What can I say? You bring out the worst in me Luthor. So anyway are you going to tell me where we're going?"
"It's a surprise."
"Ah.. a common phrase of the axe murderer,"
"I'm not going to hack you to death Chloe. I'd never be able to get the stain out of my car. Besides, I'd have nobody to have a little competitive banter with."
"Yeah, I'm not that talkative when I'm dead,"
The two continued their harmless banter as they sped out of Smallville. There was the occasional argument about radio stations, toupees and politics, but for the most part the ride went smoothly.
"We're here." Lex said, pulling off the road and parking the car.
Chloe stepped out of the vehicle, the strong scent of the countryside hitting her, and she almost fell over in surprise when she saw where they were.
Lex smirked, happy that he'd caught her off guard. "What do you think Sullivan?"
"I guess it's nice.. for a cow farmer," she added, glancing up at the pink neon lights that spelled 'Terry's Diner'. She remembered this place, it was just out of the limits of Metropolis; she and her father made a pit stop here on their drive to Smallville.
"I didn't know you judged so quickly by outer appearance..?" Lex said smoothly.
"Oh, it's not just the cheesy atmosphere, I was at this place a couple of years ago and from what I remember I had food poisoning during my first week in Smallville." Chloe groaned. She wasn't sure what Lex was trying to prove by bringing her here.
"Don't worry, this place is under new management!"
"Who? You?"
"No. Jerry's brother, Terry. Didn't you notice the new sign?"
"Well, no. My eyes tend to look away from blinding neon pink lights."
"Don't tell me you don't find this place.. quaint?"
"Of course I do, but so do serial killers. I'm sure they filmed a scene from a slasher movie in this place. An innocent and naïve young girl charmed into the car of a manipulative older man who-"
"Chloe you are not innocent. It's more like the evil young woman who lured the unsuspecting billionaire into a vicious game of blackmail and-"
"Can we go in now? It's cold."
"Fine Sullivan, I just wanted to prove a point." Lex stated, motioning for her to follow him.
"What? That you have no good taste?" she laughed as they headed for the diner
"No... that you can't predict my every move." he said arrogantly.
"Oh yeah? Well I predict that within the next ten seconds that smirk will be replaced by shock." commented Chloe.
"Really? Now what makes you think-" Lex paused as he felt a squelching sound beneath his shoe and swore loudly.
Chloe tried unsuccessfully to contain her laughter.
"Shit..." Lex stated.
"Yeah, no kidding"
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"I took the liberty of ordering for you," Chloe said as Lex made his way out of the washroom.
The young man was thoroughly humiliated with the incident. He was certain that Chloe would never look at him the same way.
"Hey, did you wipe the cow crap off your shoe?!" Chloe asked in a surprisingly loud and clear voice.
"Very tactful, Chloe. If you mention this again I'll sue you and you'll spend the rest of you life sharing soap with thirty other inmates in a funny smelling cell..." Lex stated coolly, taking a seat next to her, "Chicken sandwich. Interesting."
"I know, the waiter even said it was real chicken, free range and everything," Chloe informed him.
"That's wonderful. I love it when they give my food a taste of freedom before slaughtering it, hacking it up into tiny pieces and putting it on a plate,"
"It does make you feel better about eating them, doesn't it?" Chloe asked thoughtfully.
Lex smiled then attacked his food with a fork, studying it intently.
"I think it's dead now Lex,"
"Good, I was just checking," he said before picking it up and munching on it.
"What? I'm hungry." he stated when Chloe gave him a look.
"You're not what I expected Lex Luthor," she said shaking her head.
"I'm glad. Now, I have to ask you to turn off your tape recorder in your bag before we continue this conversation further." he said, sipping his coke.
Chloe was taken by surprise and let out a frustrated grunt before taking out the tape recorder and switching it off.
Lex gave himself a smug smile, glad that his assumption had been correct.
"I know you better than you think Sullivan." Lex stated, finishing off his sandwich and ordering another one.
Chloe controlled her temper. Damn Lex and his superior attitude.
"As you said before, this isn't a date so can we stop the small talk and get down to business... I really don't want to stay here with you longer than I have to." she said icily.
"Ouch... do you want the knife back or shall I just leave it in my heart?" Lex asked, gripping his chest.
"Leave it there... maybe it'll start rusting and you'll be poisoned." Chloe said coolly. "Now who are you planning to wed?"
Lex raised an eyebrow... the girl did not believe in beating around the bush.
"I don't have a lot of options Chloe," he sighed, digging into his second sandwich.
The girl released an easy laugh, "What do you mean? You're smart, interesting to talk to, good looking-"
Chloe stopped when she saw the delighted expression on Lex's face.
"...I mean if you're into the whole bald-and-old thing." She added quickly.
"You wound me Miss Sullivan." Lex said, his eyes playing with hers.
"Yeah, pity I can't make a career out of it. You know, if you still can't find someone to marry you, you can always get one of those mail order brides." she ended.
"Hell no. How would I stand to live with one for a year? I have to find someone I can trust because while we're married she'll own half of LexCorp... that's what the contract requires."
"Well... look, let me go off the record and help you out? I doubt you want to tell anyone else about this, and since I already know..."
"I see then once I've chosen a bride you can write all about the soulless Luthor who married to preserve his fortune," Lex said bitterly, knowing that Chloe didn't realize the number of jobs that would also be lost.
"Oh no... I was going for the whole prince charming finding a bride and making her dreams come true thing. I wouldn't write negative articles on purpose," Chloe explained.
Lex was quite surprised, but didn't let it show.
"I'll make you a deal Sullivan," Lex began, "Do not tell anyone about the documents you read in my office and I... will agree not to fire your father, sue you or make certain that you never become a reporter," Lex ended.
Chloe met his eyes then leaned back in her seat. With a smirk she picked up her tape recorder and held it up to her lips.
"Thank you Mr. Luthor, I'm sure the readers of The Daily Planet will be interested in what you're little threat to the innocent young woman, "she said hitting the stop button.
Lex groaned when he realized that Chloe had hit the record button when she'd taken the recorder out of her bag. Outsmarted by an eighteen year old... how very embarrassing.
"Chloe... what's it going to take to get you to drop this story for good?"
"hmmmm... well Lex, the truth is that this story *will* seep out eventually... now do you want it written by a friend or an enemy?"
"You, Chloe Sullivan are neither my friend nor my enemy... get to the point,"
"I want full coverage of the story in a year after the two of you get divorced, and I want one exclusive interview every six moths for as long as I'm a reporter."
"Make it every two years."
"One."
"Done. You drive a hard bargain Sullivan," Lex said leaning back in his seat, happy with the arrangement.
"I do my best Luthor. I guess we should get going, it's getting late, and I need to start packing for Met U." Chloe stated, getting up and slipping her bag over her shoulder.
"Not so fast Sullivan," Lex smirked snatching the bag away from her.
"Hey!" Chloe snapped. " Give that back!"
Lex smiled and held the bag high above her head and took out the small tape. He tossed it to the floor and stepped on it.
Chloe let out a soft, high-pitched gasp at the crushing sound.
"You killed my tape..."
"Oh... did I destroy the little reporter's evidence? I'm so sorry..." Lex said in mock sympathy.
"Have I mentioned how much I hate you?" Chloe snapped.
"Several times today in fact," commented Lex, tossing the bag back to Chloe.
"Well... just in case you didn't hear me, I despise you Lex," she stated.
"I'd really like to go over our love hate relationship, but I do believe you have a bill to pay," he said glancing at the cash register.
"You've got to be kidding me?" Chloe said rolling her eyes.
"On the contrary, since you've put me through hell for the past few days, I think it's the least you can do . I'll wait for you in the car." Lex said, whistling as he walked out the door.
"Did you have a nice time young lady?" the older woman smiled as Chloe handed her some bills from her bag.
"Oh yeah.. he's a catch all right."
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There was a rude honk outside the house and Chloe rolled her eyes. With a fleeting goodbye to her father she grabbed her bag and headed out the door.
"Nice work Lex, do you treat all woman this way?" Chloe asked as she clambered into his Porsche. The scent of the plush leather seat almost made up for his lack of charm.
"No, not all woman. Just the ones who impersonate florists to gain access to my home, then plant smoke bombs to create a diversion in order to read my *dead* fathers last will and testament."
"Well I'm sure the rest of the female population finds you irresistible." The girl said dryly.
"We're not on a date Chloe, if we were then you'd be seeing a very different side of me. I'll go as far as to say you look nice, don't expect anything more."
Chloe looked down at her black pants and light blue sleeveless top, "Wow, Lex Luthor thinks I look nice, I can't wait to go home and write this in my diary." Chloe's voice dripped with sarcasm. She glanced at Lex's casual tan suit, but didn't bother commenting about it. No use in inflating the man's ego further.
Lex let out a sigh, "Can we be civil for an evening? Besides, I lied to Gabe for you, you owe me."
"Fine, I guess I'm sorry." She said breezily.
"I accept your heartfelt apology." Lex added.
Chloe hit him on the shoulder, releasing a laugh from the man. "Why are you so defensive?"
"Why are you so antagonizing?"
"What can I say? You bring out the worst in me Luthor. So anyway are you going to tell me where we're going?"
"It's a surprise."
"Ah.. a common phrase of the axe murderer,"
"I'm not going to hack you to death Chloe. I'd never be able to get the stain out of my car. Besides, I'd have nobody to have a little competitive banter with."
"Yeah, I'm not that talkative when I'm dead,"
The two continued their harmless banter as they sped out of Smallville. There was the occasional argument about radio stations, toupees and politics, but for the most part the ride went smoothly.
"We're here." Lex said, pulling off the road and parking the car.
Chloe stepped out of the vehicle, the strong scent of the countryside hitting her, and she almost fell over in surprise when she saw where they were.
Lex smirked, happy that he'd caught her off guard. "What do you think Sullivan?"
"I guess it's nice.. for a cow farmer," she added, glancing up at the pink neon lights that spelled 'Terry's Diner'. She remembered this place, it was just out of the limits of Metropolis; she and her father made a pit stop here on their drive to Smallville.
"I didn't know you judged so quickly by outer appearance..?" Lex said smoothly.
"Oh, it's not just the cheesy atmosphere, I was at this place a couple of years ago and from what I remember I had food poisoning during my first week in Smallville." Chloe groaned. She wasn't sure what Lex was trying to prove by bringing her here.
"Don't worry, this place is under new management!"
"Who? You?"
"No. Jerry's brother, Terry. Didn't you notice the new sign?"
"Well, no. My eyes tend to look away from blinding neon pink lights."
"Don't tell me you don't find this place.. quaint?"
"Of course I do, but so do serial killers. I'm sure they filmed a scene from a slasher movie in this place. An innocent and naïve young girl charmed into the car of a manipulative older man who-"
"Chloe you are not innocent. It's more like the evil young woman who lured the unsuspecting billionaire into a vicious game of blackmail and-"
"Can we go in now? It's cold."
"Fine Sullivan, I just wanted to prove a point." Lex stated, motioning for her to follow him.
"What? That you have no good taste?" she laughed as they headed for the diner
"No... that you can't predict my every move." he said arrogantly.
"Oh yeah? Well I predict that within the next ten seconds that smirk will be replaced by shock." commented Chloe.
"Really? Now what makes you think-" Lex paused as he felt a squelching sound beneath his shoe and swore loudly.
Chloe tried unsuccessfully to contain her laughter.
"Shit..." Lex stated.
"Yeah, no kidding"
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"I took the liberty of ordering for you," Chloe said as Lex made his way out of the washroom.
The young man was thoroughly humiliated with the incident. He was certain that Chloe would never look at him the same way.
"Hey, did you wipe the cow crap off your shoe?!" Chloe asked in a surprisingly loud and clear voice.
"Very tactful, Chloe. If you mention this again I'll sue you and you'll spend the rest of you life sharing soap with thirty other inmates in a funny smelling cell..." Lex stated coolly, taking a seat next to her, "Chicken sandwich. Interesting."
"I know, the waiter even said it was real chicken, free range and everything," Chloe informed him.
"That's wonderful. I love it when they give my food a taste of freedom before slaughtering it, hacking it up into tiny pieces and putting it on a plate,"
"It does make you feel better about eating them, doesn't it?" Chloe asked thoughtfully.
Lex smiled then attacked his food with a fork, studying it intently.
"I think it's dead now Lex,"
"Good, I was just checking," he said before picking it up and munching on it.
"What? I'm hungry." he stated when Chloe gave him a look.
"You're not what I expected Lex Luthor," she said shaking her head.
"I'm glad. Now, I have to ask you to turn off your tape recorder in your bag before we continue this conversation further." he said, sipping his coke.
Chloe was taken by surprise and let out a frustrated grunt before taking out the tape recorder and switching it off.
Lex gave himself a smug smile, glad that his assumption had been correct.
"I know you better than you think Sullivan." Lex stated, finishing off his sandwich and ordering another one.
Chloe controlled her temper. Damn Lex and his superior attitude.
"As you said before, this isn't a date so can we stop the small talk and get down to business... I really don't want to stay here with you longer than I have to." she said icily.
"Ouch... do you want the knife back or shall I just leave it in my heart?" Lex asked, gripping his chest.
"Leave it there... maybe it'll start rusting and you'll be poisoned." Chloe said coolly. "Now who are you planning to wed?"
Lex raised an eyebrow... the girl did not believe in beating around the bush.
"I don't have a lot of options Chloe," he sighed, digging into his second sandwich.
The girl released an easy laugh, "What do you mean? You're smart, interesting to talk to, good looking-"
Chloe stopped when she saw the delighted expression on Lex's face.
"...I mean if you're into the whole bald-and-old thing." She added quickly.
"You wound me Miss Sullivan." Lex said, his eyes playing with hers.
"Yeah, pity I can't make a career out of it. You know, if you still can't find someone to marry you, you can always get one of those mail order brides." she ended.
"Hell no. How would I stand to live with one for a year? I have to find someone I can trust because while we're married she'll own half of LexCorp... that's what the contract requires."
"Well... look, let me go off the record and help you out? I doubt you want to tell anyone else about this, and since I already know..."
"I see then once I've chosen a bride you can write all about the soulless Luthor who married to preserve his fortune," Lex said bitterly, knowing that Chloe didn't realize the number of jobs that would also be lost.
"Oh no... I was going for the whole prince charming finding a bride and making her dreams come true thing. I wouldn't write negative articles on purpose," Chloe explained.
Lex was quite surprised, but didn't let it show.
"I'll make you a deal Sullivan," Lex began, "Do not tell anyone about the documents you read in my office and I... will agree not to fire your father, sue you or make certain that you never become a reporter," Lex ended.
Chloe met his eyes then leaned back in her seat. With a smirk she picked up her tape recorder and held it up to her lips.
"Thank you Mr. Luthor, I'm sure the readers of The Daily Planet will be interested in what you're little threat to the innocent young woman, "she said hitting the stop button.
Lex groaned when he realized that Chloe had hit the record button when she'd taken the recorder out of her bag. Outsmarted by an eighteen year old... how very embarrassing.
"Chloe... what's it going to take to get you to drop this story for good?"
"hmmmm... well Lex, the truth is that this story *will* seep out eventually... now do you want it written by a friend or an enemy?"
"You, Chloe Sullivan are neither my friend nor my enemy... get to the point,"
"I want full coverage of the story in a year after the two of you get divorced, and I want one exclusive interview every six moths for as long as I'm a reporter."
"Make it every two years."
"One."
"Done. You drive a hard bargain Sullivan," Lex said leaning back in his seat, happy with the arrangement.
"I do my best Luthor. I guess we should get going, it's getting late, and I need to start packing for Met U." Chloe stated, getting up and slipping her bag over her shoulder.
"Not so fast Sullivan," Lex smirked snatching the bag away from her.
"Hey!" Chloe snapped. " Give that back!"
Lex smiled and held the bag high above her head and took out the small tape. He tossed it to the floor and stepped on it.
Chloe let out a soft, high-pitched gasp at the crushing sound.
"You killed my tape..."
"Oh... did I destroy the little reporter's evidence? I'm so sorry..." Lex said in mock sympathy.
"Have I mentioned how much I hate you?" Chloe snapped.
"Several times today in fact," commented Lex, tossing the bag back to Chloe.
"Well... just in case you didn't hear me, I despise you Lex," she stated.
"I'd really like to go over our love hate relationship, but I do believe you have a bill to pay," he said glancing at the cash register.
"You've got to be kidding me?" Chloe said rolling her eyes.
"On the contrary, since you've put me through hell for the past few days, I think it's the least you can do . I'll wait for you in the car." Lex said, whistling as he walked out the door.
"Did you have a nice time young lady?" the older woman smiled as Chloe handed her some bills from her bag.
"Oh yeah.. he's a catch all right."
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