"How are you doin', Chloe?" tall, dark and handsome Clark Kent asked,
entering the office of the Torch. Chloe stood in front of her open laptop,
mouse in one hand and egg and lettuce sandwich in the other.
"Great," she said, with a high level of sarcasm. "Just great Clark. Do you know how much sleep you get when your roommate's depressed over her boyfriend not turning up to their date all weekend?"
"I'm guessing very little," Clark replied in an innocent tone of voice, puppy-dog eyes on his face, and a clear hint of concern.
"You've guessed correctly." Chloe's voice softened as she asked, and slammed her laptop shut. "Have you spoken to her since?"
"I've kinda been avoiding her," Clark admitted. "I never thought it'd be so hard, you know?"
"Yeah, I guess." Chloe took a bite out of her sandwich and sat in the cushioned chair, bathing in the rays of the sun from the nearby window. "Avoiding her won't help, though."
"I know," he sighed and sat in the chair opposite her's. "But I don't know what I'll say."
"How about 'sorry'?" Chloe suggested, and took another bite from her sandwich.
"Well, one word isn't exactly a novel, is it?" The outside corridor burst with the hurry and bustle of the end of lunch as the students started making their way to class. "I'll see you later Chloe."
Chloe sat back in her chair. It wasn't very often that she would skip school. In fact, the only other time she could remember skipping school was in fourth grade when some of the less friendly girls in the class were teasing her about not being able to compete in the Mother-Daughter swimming relay.
She was tired. She couldn't focus, let alone concentrate in Modern history, one of her favourite subjects, yet still a challenge to stay awake through, no matter how much you love it. The sun glittered on the rays of dust particles making them look like tiny golden sparks floating through the air. Her eyelids became droopy, and all her thoughts and all the sounds around her melded into black.
When she awoke the sun had set and the school seemed pretty much empty, except for Mr. Martins, who was busy marking maths papers and singing along to some bad eighties tune playing on the stereo in his room up the hall.
She glanced at the clock on the wall. 6:45.
She jumped to her feet and grabbed her coat from the wall and made her way sneakily out of the building. This wasn't the first time she had been at school late, - but it was the first time she'd been at school and no-one was really sure where she was. She would have to walk to the Talon and once again take a ride home with Lana.
Once outside, a chilly breeze gripped at her skin so she pulled on the knee- length red jacket and started walking in the general direction of the Talon.
She arrived at the Talon in about twenty minutes, her fingers and bare shins cold, not that she really cared or noticed. At times on her walk she realized she was humming the rather annoying song from the eighties that was playing in Mr. Martin's office, or wondering what Clark was doing, or what Pete or Lana or Lex... What they were doing. She let her mind pleasantly drift.
After ordering, paying for and receiving a large take-away cup of hot chocolate, her thoughts became a debate on the pro's and con's of a relationship with Lex Luthor.
"Well," the pro's began. "You obviously like him. Trust me - he's been on your mind a lot lately-"
"But he's a Luthor!" The con's butted in, rather rudely. Chloe considered this point for a moment. If she was thinking straight, at this point Chloe would be hoping no-one was watching her or reading her facial expressions, as they were quite uncontrollable when being an audience of one to a debate such as this one.
"He's got enough money to pay for a good college education, that cute little puppy dog you always wanted... Plus half of Switzerland."
The cons tried hard to think of a point or rebuttal, but knew that was hard to beat. "He employs your day, you know. That could get weird. Plus..." They paused to think. "You know all about his reputation as a womanizer, Miss Sullivan," they said, in a tone commonly used by parents wanting their children to tidy their rooms. "He'll break your heart a million times and he won't feel a thing!"
Chloe knew that when her brain started to debate against itself that she definitely needed some sleep. Luckily enough tomorrow she could sleep in. Saturdays are good.
"Mind if I sit here?" Chloe looked up from her giant paper cup of hot chocolate milk. The man her mind had just been debating over pulled out a chair from under the table she was drinking her chocolate milk at and sat down.
"No, not at all," she replied, even though he was already sitting.
"I was wondering, Miss Sullivan, if you knew what the Marcus Knight Journalism residency week is," Lex sipped at his coffee as Chloe's eyes jumped out of their earlier doziness and into a state of complete and utter alertness and focus.
"Only the best and most highly esteemed journalism camp for high school students in the entire United states of America." Her voice was charged with excitement, but lost it's enthusiasm and drooped with sadness as she said, "But there are only 120 places open each year and it's way hard to get into - thousands send in every year, plus it costs heaps."
"What if I told you," Lex said, pulling a white envelope from the inside pocket of his black jacket and placing it on the table. "That there was one open place - just for you."
She stared at the envelope.
"I would say..." She paused. "That it's way too good to be true."
Lex smiled. He admired her caution towards the situation.
"How did you get it?" Chloe asked in a whisper.
"Pulled a few strings." Understatement of the century. If the deal that got him that envelope hadn't pulled through he would probably be on his way to metropolis to break some poor teenage boy's legs that very minute.
It wasn't that he liked the young blonde. No, not at all. He truly thought she was an amazingly talented journalist, and that she deserved a place at this camp. That was the only reason he got her a place at the camp, and was willing to pay every cent needed to pay to fill that place.
"I don't have the money," Chloe muttered, embarrassed. Lex smiled.
"I don't think that's a problem."
"You're kidding me," Chloe said, realizing Lex was willing to pay for the camp.
"The seeds of today are the flowers of tomorrow," Lex quoted. His watch beeped and her looked at it and smiled.
"I've got to go. I do look forward to our next meeting, Miss Sulivan."
"Great," she said, with a high level of sarcasm. "Just great Clark. Do you know how much sleep you get when your roommate's depressed over her boyfriend not turning up to their date all weekend?"
"I'm guessing very little," Clark replied in an innocent tone of voice, puppy-dog eyes on his face, and a clear hint of concern.
"You've guessed correctly." Chloe's voice softened as she asked, and slammed her laptop shut. "Have you spoken to her since?"
"I've kinda been avoiding her," Clark admitted. "I never thought it'd be so hard, you know?"
"Yeah, I guess." Chloe took a bite out of her sandwich and sat in the cushioned chair, bathing in the rays of the sun from the nearby window. "Avoiding her won't help, though."
"I know," he sighed and sat in the chair opposite her's. "But I don't know what I'll say."
"How about 'sorry'?" Chloe suggested, and took another bite from her sandwich.
"Well, one word isn't exactly a novel, is it?" The outside corridor burst with the hurry and bustle of the end of lunch as the students started making their way to class. "I'll see you later Chloe."
Chloe sat back in her chair. It wasn't very often that she would skip school. In fact, the only other time she could remember skipping school was in fourth grade when some of the less friendly girls in the class were teasing her about not being able to compete in the Mother-Daughter swimming relay.
She was tired. She couldn't focus, let alone concentrate in Modern history, one of her favourite subjects, yet still a challenge to stay awake through, no matter how much you love it. The sun glittered on the rays of dust particles making them look like tiny golden sparks floating through the air. Her eyelids became droopy, and all her thoughts and all the sounds around her melded into black.
When she awoke the sun had set and the school seemed pretty much empty, except for Mr. Martins, who was busy marking maths papers and singing along to some bad eighties tune playing on the stereo in his room up the hall.
She glanced at the clock on the wall. 6:45.
She jumped to her feet and grabbed her coat from the wall and made her way sneakily out of the building. This wasn't the first time she had been at school late, - but it was the first time she'd been at school and no-one was really sure where she was. She would have to walk to the Talon and once again take a ride home with Lana.
Once outside, a chilly breeze gripped at her skin so she pulled on the knee- length red jacket and started walking in the general direction of the Talon.
She arrived at the Talon in about twenty minutes, her fingers and bare shins cold, not that she really cared or noticed. At times on her walk she realized she was humming the rather annoying song from the eighties that was playing in Mr. Martin's office, or wondering what Clark was doing, or what Pete or Lana or Lex... What they were doing. She let her mind pleasantly drift.
After ordering, paying for and receiving a large take-away cup of hot chocolate, her thoughts became a debate on the pro's and con's of a relationship with Lex Luthor.
"Well," the pro's began. "You obviously like him. Trust me - he's been on your mind a lot lately-"
"But he's a Luthor!" The con's butted in, rather rudely. Chloe considered this point for a moment. If she was thinking straight, at this point Chloe would be hoping no-one was watching her or reading her facial expressions, as they were quite uncontrollable when being an audience of one to a debate such as this one.
"He's got enough money to pay for a good college education, that cute little puppy dog you always wanted... Plus half of Switzerland."
The cons tried hard to think of a point or rebuttal, but knew that was hard to beat. "He employs your day, you know. That could get weird. Plus..." They paused to think. "You know all about his reputation as a womanizer, Miss Sullivan," they said, in a tone commonly used by parents wanting their children to tidy their rooms. "He'll break your heart a million times and he won't feel a thing!"
Chloe knew that when her brain started to debate against itself that she definitely needed some sleep. Luckily enough tomorrow she could sleep in. Saturdays are good.
"Mind if I sit here?" Chloe looked up from her giant paper cup of hot chocolate milk. The man her mind had just been debating over pulled out a chair from under the table she was drinking her chocolate milk at and sat down.
"No, not at all," she replied, even though he was already sitting.
"I was wondering, Miss Sullivan, if you knew what the Marcus Knight Journalism residency week is," Lex sipped at his coffee as Chloe's eyes jumped out of their earlier doziness and into a state of complete and utter alertness and focus.
"Only the best and most highly esteemed journalism camp for high school students in the entire United states of America." Her voice was charged with excitement, but lost it's enthusiasm and drooped with sadness as she said, "But there are only 120 places open each year and it's way hard to get into - thousands send in every year, plus it costs heaps."
"What if I told you," Lex said, pulling a white envelope from the inside pocket of his black jacket and placing it on the table. "That there was one open place - just for you."
She stared at the envelope.
"I would say..." She paused. "That it's way too good to be true."
Lex smiled. He admired her caution towards the situation.
"How did you get it?" Chloe asked in a whisper.
"Pulled a few strings." Understatement of the century. If the deal that got him that envelope hadn't pulled through he would probably be on his way to metropolis to break some poor teenage boy's legs that very minute.
It wasn't that he liked the young blonde. No, not at all. He truly thought she was an amazingly talented journalist, and that she deserved a place at this camp. That was the only reason he got her a place at the camp, and was willing to pay every cent needed to pay to fill that place.
"I don't have the money," Chloe muttered, embarrassed. Lex smiled.
"I don't think that's a problem."
"You're kidding me," Chloe said, realizing Lex was willing to pay for the camp.
"The seeds of today are the flowers of tomorrow," Lex quoted. His watch beeped and her looked at it and smiled.
"I've got to go. I do look forward to our next meeting, Miss Sulivan."