Author's note: Hi. My birthday is in a couple days (Leanne8582- 8/5/82- get it!). And do you know what I want most of all this year- reviews!

That being said, I actually have a real note. The song used in this chapter is "How" by Lisa Loeb. No infringement is intended. // indicates lyrics.

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PDA

Chapter 13- All in the Family

Clark Kent closed the passenger side door of his father's pick-up. He walked around the cab and opened the driver's side door. As he slid into the cab of the pick-up, Clark turned and looked over at his lone passenger. Lana Lang's only response was a raised eyebrow. Clark sighed and once again turned his attention to the driveway in front of him. With a heavy arm, Clark reached up and turned the ignition key. The pick-up rumbled to life. Clark put the massive vehicle into gear and pulled away from the Luthor Mansion.

"Lana," he began.

"Don't even start, Clark. We just spent all day moving Chloe into Lex's place. I'm tired, dusty and sore. I do not need what ever you're about to say."

"I just don't feel right about leaving."

"That! Right there, that's what I didn't want to hear."

"I can't help it, Lana. I feel as though I've just delivered my best friend into the Lion's Den."

"Then why didn't you say something earlier? We spent an afternoon with Chloe and Lex. For heaven's sake, we just moved Chloe in."

"You know I haven't been completely on board with this idea from the start."

"Clark!" said Lana, almost screaming from frustration. "What ever happened to 'if it makes Chloe happy.'"

"That was back when their moving in together was just an idea. It was a concept. Now, it's- I don't know- more real? When Chloe goes back to school on Monday, it won't be on the bus. It will be in a limo."

"I don't think Chloe will take the limo to school."

"You know what I mean."

"I don't get you, Clark Kent. When Chloe told us we could leave, Pete jumped in his car and didn't look back."

"Well, he has a date tonight."

"Not the point. Pete Ross hates the Luthor's more than anybody else I've ever met. But he's okay with this. Why aren't you?"

"Pete doesn't know that Chloe and Lex are dating."

"Again, not the point."

"It's kind of the point. Pete just thinks that Chloe is staying with Lex. I know that they're a couple. That, at night, they'll be doing... stuff."

Lana reached out and put her hand on Clark's shoulder. "Why does that bother you so much?"

"I wish I knew. The whole thing just seems so-----


-------weird."

Lex looked up from where he was trying to help Chloe organize her book collection. "What do you mean, weird?"

Chloe realized she might have offended her boyfriend and quickly tried to fix it. "Not, you know, bad weird. Just weird." Lex gave Chloe a searching glance. Chloe rolled her eyes. "It's just kinda weird. I mean, I'm cohabiting with my boyfriend. That's something I didn't think I'd be doing until after I got my Masters and was working my way through the ranks of the Daily Planet."

"Thought this out, have you?"

"Sort of. I mean, we all imagine what our future would be like. I thought I'd graduate from high school, go to college. Get my bachelors, then my masters. Then I would work for the Daily Planet. Along the way, I'd meet this totally fantastic guy. We'd move in together- in a beautiful loft apartment. He'd be a young professional also; just as wrapped up in his career as I am in mine." Chloe began to get a wistful look on her face. "We'd get take out Chinese. And tell each other about our days. Then, maybe, we'd get married, have kids. Buy a house in the suburbs and commute to the city."

Lex looked at Chloe with a worried expression. "Chlo, If your uncomfortable about moving in with me-"

"No, that's not it. It's just, I had this totally elaborate fantasy of what my future would be like, and now I realize that the picture in my mind is never going to match up with my life." Chloe glanced at Lex. His eyes were down cast and he looked pensive. "Come on, now," she said as she walked over and climbed in his lap. "I'm not sad. It's not like my life would have followed the blueprints exactly anyway. I had my self married at age 26, but heaven knows when, or if it would have actually happened." The corners of Lex's mouth turned up a little.

"And," Chloe continued, "I gave myself two cats, but who knows if the apartment I want would even allow pets."

"Two cats?" asked Lex as wrapped his arms around Chloe's small frame.

"Yep," she said as she snuggled deeper into Lex's embrace. "I was going to name them Darla and Oz."

"What?"

"Never mind."

"Chloe. You know I'm worried about you getting to have a normal life. You're supposed to go to college, and party with your friends, and live in the dorms and complain about the food. Your not supposed to be dating a man who's five years your senior and already out of school."

"Lex, look at me." When he lifted his head and looked obligingly into Chloe's eyes, she said, "I love you. And maybe, this isn't how my life was supposed to go. But my life wasn't supposed to include a mother who abandoned me and a father who disowned me. My best friend wasn't supposed to be a... well, whatever Clark's malfunction is. We still haven't figured it out." That got a slight chuckle from Lex. "The point is, you think a "normal life" would make me happy. I'm telling you that I'm happy now. Right here in your arms."

Chloe leaned over and kissed Lex. She pulled away from him slowly and said, "I love you. And because of that, I let you get away with a lot. But there are certain things I will not stand for. You can't make my decisions for me, you can't know the future, and you won't martyr yourself- or give up on this relationship- because you think you know what I want or need. I won't-----------

---------let this happen!"

"There's no need to overreact, Jonathan."

"No, Martha." Jonathan Kent turned from his wife back to his son. "Clark, please tell me that I'm not hearing what I think I'm hearing. Please tell me that Chloe Sullivan not is living with the Luthors. And that you helped her move."

"Dad, it's not and ideal situation-"

"You're damn right it's not!"

"But it's not like she had anywhere else to go."

Martha took a step towards her son. "Clark, you know that Chloe is always welcome here. For as long as she would need."

"Yeah, I know. I offered to Chloe. But she said we couldn't afford it. And her moving in with Lex kind of makes sense. I mean, he's got all that room. And money."

"Remember, Clark," Jonathan said darkly. "Nothing the Luthors do is without a price. If Lex opened his home to Chloe, then there's a reason. And I'm going to find out what it is." Jonathan stormed out of the kitchen through the back door and headed towards the barn.

Martha looked at her son. "Clark, I want you to bring Chloe home with you after school tomorrow, okay?" Clark nodded. "Good." Martha turned and went after her husband. Clark sighed as he watched her go. Then we went upstairs to his room.

When Martha caught up with Jonathan, he had made it the barn and was fiddling with the tractor. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"What's wrong? Chloe Sullivan is living in the same house as that.... man."

"You don't trust Lex with Chloe?"

"I wouldn't trust Lex Luthor with a house plant."

"Jonathan, if Gabe really threw Chloe out-"

"Martha, we've already caught Lex investigating Clark. And I've been wary of Chloe since that school assignment. Can you imagine if the both of them put some serious effort into finding out about Clark's adoption." Jonathan lowered his voice to just above a whisper and said, "Martha, does it seem likely that Gabe Sullivan would throw his only child out on the street?"

"I admit it doesn't sound like Gabe." Martha thought for a second, then her face lit up with sudden comprehension. "You think that Lex engineered the situation with Gabe and Chloe so that he could get closer to Chloe." Jonathan nodded as Martha continued, "So he could use Chloe to learn more about Clark. Jonathan, that's crazy."

"I've never known the Luthors to be anything but devious and self-centered. This would not be out of character for them."

"I really don't think-"

"I know you've developed a fondness for him, Martha, but I for one don't plan on taking my eyes off Lex---------

------------Luthor, am I interrupting you?"

"No, Dominic. Come in." Lionel Luthor said, as he put away the reports he had been reviewing. He looked up at his nervous employee. "Sit down. Now, tell me what you've discovered about this situation."

"Well sir," said Dominic, sitting rather uncomfortably in one of Lionel's designer chairs. "It seems that the rumors are true. A sixteen year old girl just moved into the Manor, today. Our source inside the house confirm that she had been staying there for a week prior."

"And her relationship with my son?"

"Undetermined. They have separate bedrooms. Here's her dossier," Dominic said, handing Lionel a manila folder.

Lionel opened the folder and examined the contents. It contained the girl's medical history, school records, and known associates. "Is this it?" asked Lionel.

"We're working on the rest, sir," Dominic reassured him. "It's as complete as we could make it with the limited amount of time with which we had to work."

"Sullivan," mused Lionel. "Why does that name sound familiar?"

"The manager of your Smallville plant- Gabe Sullivan. He's her father."

"Well, that is interesting, isn't it? I'll be monitoring this situation closely." Lionel took a sip of the coffee that was sitting on the desk in front of him. "Dominic, prepare the helicopter. I think I'll take a trip to Smallville. After all, it's been ages since I've seen------------

------------Lex!"

Lex Luthor groaned and rubbed his hands over his tired eyes. "What? What did I do wrong now?" Chloe just raised an eyebrow. Lex sighed. "Chloe, love, we've been at this for hours. Can we please organize the rest of your books tomorrow."

Chloe gave Lex a huge grin and said, "We can knock off for today, if you'd like." Chloe thought she heard a muttered 'thank you.' "Anyway," she said, "I was just going to tell you not to shelve that one."

Lex examined the book. "Are you in the middle of reading it?"

"No, it's just my favorite and I like to keep it on my nightstand where I have easy access to it at all times."

Lex turned the book over so he could see the title on the binding. "Alice in Wonderland?"

"And Through the Looking Glass. They're both in that edition."

"Why is this your favorite?" asked Lex.

"Curious little blonde girl? You have to ask?"

Lex chuckled a little. He stood up and walked over to Chloe's CD player. Casually, he ran his index finger over her CD collection and selected one. Chloe couldn't see what he picked. Lex opened the lid on the CD deck. He carefully placed the CD he had chosen hand hit play. As he walked over to where Chloe sat surrounded by piles of clothes, "How" by Lisa Loeb began to play.

/I didn't come this far for you to make this hard for me.

And now you want to ask me "how"?/

He held out a hand to her and asked, "Will you, won't you, will you, won't you, won't you join the dance?"

Chloe grinned a Cheshire cat grin at him and said, "What? Machiavelli doesn't have a quote for this situation so you're forced to resort to books I've actually read." Chloe stood and took Lex's hand.

/It's like - how does your heart beat, and why do you breathe?

How does your heart beat, and why do you breathe?/

She stepped up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. Lex's arms went around Chloe's waist. They began to sway slowly to the music.

/With all the things that you could be,

You never could learn how to be me.

And now you want to ask me "how"?/

"You never cease to amaze me Mr. Luthor."

Lex brushed a loose strand of hair out Chloe's eyes and tucked it back into the bandana that held her hair. Then he put his hand back on her waist. "I hope I never will," he said softly as he pulled her closer.

/It's like - how does your heart beat, and why do you breathe?

How does your heart beat, and why do you breathe

How do you breathe/

And they danced, just as they were, for hours. Both of them in old sweatshirts and jeans. Covered in sweat and grime from the move. Chloe with her hair in total disarray and Lex with a smudge of dirt on his forehead. But for them, none of it mattered. The entire world dropped away. All they knew was the music and the steady rhythm of one another's heart beats.

To be Continued.......