Chapter 1
Chloe bounced nervously in her seat while the plane made various frightening noises. She triple checked her seatbelt and then gripped her armrests tightly. Across from her, Lex was reading through that morning's copy of the Wall Street Journal, completely relaxed. It was driving her crazy.
A whirring sound came from the left side of the plane, near the wing, and she jumped as high as she could with the seatbelt on. Her head snapped to the left and she tried desperately to see out of the far window. When she realized that she'd have to get up to see out of the other side of the death machine (aka plane) she squeezed the armrests even tighter, terrified at the thought. The same noise sounded again, this time from the right side of the plane. She jumped again and stared fixedly out of her window at the wing, trying to see something suspicious.
He was holding the paper in front of his face, but she didn't have to see him to know that he was smirking at her. Feeling quite ridiculous, she forced herself to calm down, taking a few deep breaths and resisting the urge to pout. She was beginning to relax...
The plane suddenly began to move and she let out a small yelp. Lex peered over the paper at her strange behaviour and then folded up his paper. "Chloe?" he struggled not to laugh outright. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," she snapped, praying that she wasn't blushing. The plane turned and then slowly rolled to a stop. "I don't suppose we're there yet?" she asked him hopefully.
"I'm afraid not," he smirked. "Have you never flown before?"
"I have," she reached out and pushed the blind down over her window. "I was five though – Dad took me to Disney World." Lex undid his seatbelt and stood up. "What are you doing?" she yelped. "Sit down!"
"The plane isn't moving," he told her slowly, as if she were crazy. Chloe frowned.
"Oh," she muttered and turned away. He was still smirking when he sat in the seat beside her and buckled himself in.
"First of all," he reached over and pushed the blind up. "If you're going to hog the window seat, at least leave the blind up."
Chloe rolled her eyes. "I can't believe you'd ever fly again," she squeezed her eyes shut and rested her head against the seat.
"I prefer not to think about that," he muttered and mimicked her actions. "Besides, the plane itself was fine, it was the other passengers that caused it to crash."
"Don't say crash!" Chloe snapped. Lex rolled his eyes at her, but she was slightly pleased to note that he seemed less amused than he had before. 'Maybe he's worried,' she thought smugly. 'Good.'
After a brief stop in Newark to fuel up, the Luthor Corp jet was safely on it's way to Paris. The pilot's voice sounded through the cabin a while after they'd levelled out in the air. "Mr. Luthor I'm switching to auto-pilot now. We're out of American airspace and should be arriving in Paris in about eight hours."
Lex undid his seatbelt and walked over to the bar, pouring himself a glass of brandy. Chloe followed his lead and undid her own belt. She chanced a look out of the window, but could only make out clouds and endless black sky.
"Do you want something?" Lex asked her.
"Is there coffee?"
Lex grinned at her hopeful tone and pulled a bag of fancy beans out of one of the small cupboards. "French vanilla roast okay?" he asked, holding up the bag. Chloe hopped to her feet, forgetting her nervousness about flying at the mere sight of coffee, and hurried over. She grabbed the bag and looked at it adoringly. "You're a strange girl."
"You collect comic books," she returned. He put a hand to his chest.
"You're mean," he feigned insult. "Coffee junkie."
"Trekkie dork," she grinned.
"Who told you?" he smirked and then left her to make her coffee.
Chloe hummed to herself while she measured enough coffee to make a normal pot, and then doubled it. She hit the brew button and began to tap her fingers impatiently as it began to percolate. Skill-fully switching the half full pot for a large mug, she let the mug fill up before switching the pot back. She blew quickly on the steaming mug before taking a tentative sip. "Yum," she whispered and then took her seat across from Lex.
Her watch read midnight, but once she'd finished her first cup of coffee, Chloe wasn't even close to tired. In fact, she was rocking back and forth in her seat slightly, her foot tapping out a strange rhythm on the floor.
Lex stifled a grin at the sight, glad to see her happy about something again. She'd been so down lately that he'd forgotten how amazing she looked when she was excited. "How's the coffee?" he asked. Her hands seemed to actually be vibrating.
"Strong," was the reply, her mouth sliding into an easy grin. Lex smirked and set aside his magazine, bored with the article he'd been attempting to read. "So what do you do on an eight hour flight?" she asked him.
Lex sighed and tried to relax into his seat. "Normally I'd go over paperwork, but since this isn't really a business trip," he stretched his legs out in front of him. "Whatever you want. Sleep?" He watched her still shaky hands doubtfully.
"I could sleep," she nodded. When he raised his eyebrows she grinned. "Oh please. The caffeine high only lasts for about twenty minutes; my body is at least ten percent caffeine anyways."
Lex chuckled and opened his magazine again while she grabbed her duffle bag and went into the bathroom to change. She came out a few minutes later and Lex burst out laughing again. "Oh be quiet," she grumbled and flung herself back into her seat.
"I didn't say anything," Lex said defensively and continued to eye her pyjamas.
"They were a birthday present," she explained, looking down at the two-piece outfit. They were baby blue, soft, and covered in colourful coffee cups and pieces of biscotti. "From Pete."
"They're...cute," he smirked realizing that cute was indeed the very best word that described her at the moment. From the cute pyjamas, the ridiculous toe-socks on her feet, and even the two small ponytails she'd pulled her hair into; she just looked...cute. "When was your birthday?" he asked her.
"March 5," she got up and poured herself another cup of coffee. "Do you want some?"
"No!" Lex yelped quickly, not wanting to have to even go near that tar that she liked to call coffee. "I mean, no thank-you."
Chloe shrugged. "More for me," she finished off the last drops in the pot and carried her mug to her seat. "Are there any blankets?"
"In the overhead compartment," Lex replied and then went back to his reading. She reached up to open the compartment and he tried not to watch when her top rode up slightly. He forced himself to turn away from the distracting strip of pale skin that came into view. He was relieved when she dropped a pillow and a blanket on the seat beside him, her shirt moving back down. She closed the compartment and carried her own blanket and pillow over to her seat.
While Chloe bundled herself in the blanket and got comfy, he began to notice exactly how restraining his coat and tie was. Lex slipped the jacket off and loosened his tie as well, tossing it on the seat beside him. He undid the top two buttons on his shift and grabbed his pillow. He tried to get comfortable.
The plane landed at Charles de Gaulle Airport at exactly 4:03 PM European Continental Time. Chloe figured that there was an 8-hour time difference; she hoped that she'd be able to sleep that night.
Lex had hired a car to take the two of them to the hotel. "Where'd the pilot?" she asked him.
"Sent him home," Lex told her easily. "He'll come back when we're ready to go home."
"How long are we staying?" she asked him, peering out the window at the city. She'd only packed enough clothes for a week or so. "And where's Quinn?"
"The security team is being given a well deserved holiday while we're here," he explained. "I didn't think they'd be necessary while we were here. As for how long, I was thinking a week or two in Paris..."
She looked at him strangely when he didn't finish, but then shrugged. "Sounds good," she smiled. "Do you have to go to any meetings while we're here?"
He nodded. "I'm meeting with an associate on Monday morning to discuss a possible acquisition, but that's it," he assured her.
"Does Lana know we're here? Chloe couldn't help but grin at the though of her friend.
Lex shook his head. "I thought it would be more interesting if we surprised her," he smirked. She flashed his a grin of approval before turning back to watch the city. The car finally came to a stop outside of a large, looming building. They climbed out and Chloe stared up at it in awe.
"I can't believe I'm in Paris!" she squealed and jumped a little, knocking him lightly with her elbow. "Dad would love—"She stopped and looked down at her shoes quietly, biting her lip.
"Let's go check in," Lex suggested and placed his hand on the small of her back, guiding her in through the revolving doorway. Two bellboys rushed out to retrieve their bags. Lex led Chloe to the front desk where a middle-aged man in an impeccably pressed suit greeted them.
"Bonjour Monsieur, Mademoiselle," the man said. "Bienvenue a la Plaza Parisienne." Chloe felt incredibly underdressed in her jeans and trendy blazer, especially next to Lex and the guy in the three-piece suit. The entire lobby was decorated with gold trimmings and couches and chairs lined with posh red velvet.
"Bonjour," Lex nodded to the man. "Reservation pour Luthor."
The man checked the computer. "Ah, Mr. Luthor," he smiled grandly and spoke in a heavily accented but fluent English. "Yes we have you booked in our penthouse suite. Joseph will show you there." He handed them each a silver key card. "Enjoy your stay, and if you need anything, please let us know."
"Merci," Lex nodded and shook his hand, slipping him a bill so discretely that it was obvious that he'd done it hundreds of times before. "Let's go," Lex said to Chloe. She nodded dumbly and allowed him to lead her over to where the bellboy, Joseph, was waiting.
They took the elevator up to the very top floor, number 25, and Joseph ushered them into the small vestibule area. He swiped a gold card through the panel beside the door and then pushed it open. Joseph stepped aside and let Lex and Chloe go through. She looked around in awe at the large suite. From the main room she could make out three bedrooms, a large bathroom, a kitchenette, and office space, big screen tv...
Joseph brought the luggage in. "Vous pouvez laissez ici," Lex stopped him from taking the bags into the bedrooms. "Merci beaucoup." He shook the bellboy's hand, slipping him a bill in a denomination so large that Joseph's eyes widened slightly.
"Merci Monsieur," Joseph thanked him. "Madamoiselle," he nodded at Chloe and then left.
"You made his day," Chloe snarked, grabbing her suitcase and pulling it towards the bedrooms.
"If you tip well at the beginning of the stay you tend to get excellent service until you leave," he told her absently. "Take any room you want."
She nodded and poked her head into the first bedroom she found. It was enormous; complete with a king sized bed, a blue and cream colour scheme, and a private bathroom. She peeked quickly into the next rooms, each a tad smaller than the first and decided on the peach and tan coloured room next to the blue one, leaving the master bedroom for Lex.
Chloe hoisted the suitcase onto the bed, a plush looking queen, and opened it wide, beginning to take her clothes out. She'd brought several sets of casual shirts and pants, from her own closet, as well as a couple of the outfits that Lex had bought her when she moved in, just in case.
Lex knocked on her door and leaned casually on the frame. "Did you bring anything formal? I thought maybe we could go out for dinner tonight," he asked her. "Go visit Lana tomorrow."
Chloe held up a classy looking Versacci suit and a pair of black Jimmy Choo's. "This okay?" she asked him. Lex nodded. "What time?"
"The French tend to eat dinner late," he told her. "Eight sound good?" When she nodded he loosened his tie and turned around. "I'll make reservations. I think I'm going to lay down for a couple of hours."
"Okay," she called and finished unpacking. Once she was finished she checked her watch. After changing it to the proper time she decided that a nap sounded like a good idea. She set the alarm clock on the nightstand and collapsed unceremoniously onto the bed. She fell asleep instantly.
TBC...
A/N: Okay, a few rather important notes this time... It's come time for me to alienate some of my readers. Why? Because I just couldn't resist some of the comments that will arise in the next few chapters. Don't worry, it's noting mean, and it's all completely factual information based on my own experiences when I was in Europe (particularly when I was in France). If any of you get offended by some of the jokes in this episode, I'm truly sorry...and would just like to point out that if any of you actually do get offended you should really lighten up. :0) In case you want a hint, most of the comments will be uttered by Lana, since I look at her to be the dumbest character (with Clark gone anyway). Also there's the ironic spin to it that Lana is played by the only Canadian actor on the show. You'll see what I mean...
Please try to ignore the poor French, it's been a while since I had to spell anything in French and my word processor isn't picking it up...also I think I spelled Versacci wrong...
Thanks to everyone who reviewed episode 4.03! It's nice to hear people excited about my spoilers. And for the record, I wish I wrote for Smallville too...how cool would that be?! :0)