A/N – I've changed the rating of this fic thanks to a comment from JanAlex; and in response to her other comment; I allowed Clark and Ashley to consummate their relationship because (from experience) it was a realistic time in their relationship to do so and it just felt right. Thank you so much for your kind comments on the characters and I agree, there is more to their relationship than sex but sex is an important part of a teenage/adult relationship and I felt it was the right time to handle that subject. Thanks again.

Chapter Seven

Clark sat in Chloe's chair in front of the computer, reading through the front page of the Torch and smiling to himself. Chloe had outdone herself this time, he had been worried that her thirst for journalism would ensure she would omit the truth and the article would be filled with half-truths and dodgy sources but it wasn't. It was perfect. He folded it up and placed it in her in-tray; she was late again. For some reason, Chloe was always late on the day the new issue came out; it was as if she was nervous about people reading her work which was ridiculous considering her character. He glanced across at the 'Wall of Weird', still no sign of Ashley's new-found meteorological influence but he was sure Chloe had plans of some sort.

"Has she read it yet?" asked Chloe as she walked into the office, throwing her bag and denim jacket on the old sofa. "What did she say?"

"I haven't seen her to ask her," said Clark. "I read it though, I thought it was fantastic. It might be your best work yet," Chloe smiled broadly and picked up the folded copy from her in-tray, flicking it out and perusing the front page.

"You're biased; vested interest in the party in question," she laughed. "I thought she'd have been in here with you; it's weird to see you alone for once,"

"We spent the entire weekend together," explained Clark, Chloe nodded as she continued to read the school newspaper. "She stayed over on Saturday night," She looked up at him and seeing the smile on his face, dropped the paper to the floor and moved closer. Clark didn't need to be asked, he was dying to tell someone and Chloe was the first to appear. "We had to sneak her out on Sunday morning in case Mom and Dad found her there. We had so much fun, Chloe. It was amazing,"

"My God," sighed Chloe. "Clark Kent, you are now a man," They both burst out laughing but stopped when Ashley came running through the office doors and threw her arms around Chloe who was speechless.

"Er… Ashley, I'm over here," smiled Clark but Ashley just stuck her tongue out at him and let a shell-shocked Chloe go.

"The story is amazing, thank you so much," she beamed. "I didn't know what you were going to say or anything but it was so, I don't know, it was just perfect. Did you read it, Clark? Isn't it just perfect?" Clark laughed softly and nodded, Ashley had never looked so happy. "I've got to see Miss Harper before class but I'll catch up with you both later. Thanks again, Chloe," Ashley rushed over and planted a kiss on Clark's cheek before running out of the office again.

"Did you talk to her about the whole weather thing?" asked Chloe, her eyes still fixed on the office door.

"Yeah, she took it quite well," said Clark, Chloe nodded in agreement.

Clark carried in the majority of the shopping bags from the back of the truck and with his super-speed, started to put everything away while Martha picked up the new issue of the Torch and sat down to read it at the dinner table. Clark finished putting the groceries away and sat down opposite her, she glanced at him over the top of the paper with a smile.

"You're acting very strangely, Clark," she said, a hint of a smile playing on her lips. "Are you sure you're feeling alright?"

"Did you like her, Mom?" he asked, Martha put the newspaper down on the table and looked at her son.

"She was a very pleasant girl but I can't help feeling you've rushed into this relationship. A week before you started seeing her, you were still talking about Lana as if you'd never get over her and now, here you are with a new girlfriend," she sighed. "I don't want to be all 'Mom-like' about it but you asked me,"

"I know what you mean, Mom," he said with a sigh. "I do sometimes think about Lana but it's over and she made that perfectly clear when I tried to patch things up between us. I really like Ashley; I think she's right for me,"

"That's great, honey. As long as you are with her for those reasons and not because you miss having a girl in your life," Martha stood up and moved into the kitchen to fill the kettle. "Thanks for helping with the groceries," She looked up at Clark but there was nobody there.

Clark thought about everything his mother had said; he had been so busy thinking about how he felt about Ashley that he had completely forgotten his real feelings for Lana. He just wanted to see her, to talk to her and find out if anything was there. If he could talk to her without wanting to hold her in his arms then he would know that things with Ashley were meant to be. He reached the house in no time and knocked loudly on the door, it took a while for her to open but finally, Lana stood before him with a frown.

"Hey Clark, are you okay?" she asked, moving aside to let him come in. He nodded silently as he walked inside, unsure of what he was supposed to say to her. He sat down on the sofa and waited for Lana to join him. "What's wrong? Has something happened?" She sat down next to him and smoothed down her jeans.

"No, everything's fine. I just wanted to see you," he explained, she sighed with relief and nodded. "How's all the school stuff going, any better?"

"Yeah but I don't really want to talk about it. It's too depressing as it is, I don't want to drag you down with me," she smiled. "Tell me what you've been up to. I read the Torch today; Chloe's article was very interesting. I think I learned more about Ashley from that than I ever would from talking to her,"

"She's just a little shy," Clark immediately leapt to Ashley's defence. "I'm sure she'll open up once you get to know her a little better," Lana looked slightly uncomfortable but nodded anyway. "You do want to get to know her, don't you?"

"Of course I do, Clark. I mean, she's going to be with us a lot more now that you two are serious so… Yes, I want to get to know her better," she nodded; Clark smiled and leaned back into the sofa, sighing heavily. This was harder than he thought; he just wanted to ask Lana how she felt about him. The truth. But it was the one thing that they kept hidden from each other, he had lied about his feelings for her for so long that it was only fair for her to have her turn.

"I'm worried about things though," he said finally. "I mean, I really like her and everything but I can't help feeling there's something missing. Like maybe she's holding something back from me and I don't know what it is,"

"What makes you think that?" asked Lana, her eyes wide with anticipation.

"I don't know. I just don't know what I'm feeling anymore, I had a chat with Mom and now I'm all over the place," explained Clark, looking across at Lana. She looked up at him and smiled, remaining silent as he moved closer to her and pressed his lips against hers gently. He broke away within seconds.

"Clark, I…" she started, her hand touching her lips.

"I'm sorry, Lana. I shouldn't have done that," he sighed, standing up from the sofa. "I don't know what I'm even doing here," He walked towards the door and Lana jumped up to follow him, opening the door for him. "I never should have come over,"

"Clark, you know I'm always here for you, no matter what," she smiled and stood on tip-toes, kissing him tenderly on the cheek. They stood looking deep into each other's eyes for a moment when suddenly, the skies turned dark and the heaviest rain Smallville had ever known began to pour down upon them. They both rushed back into the doorway and looked out at the scene before them, the streets were almost flooded already; the rain had come from nowhere, so unexpected that people in their summer clothes rushed into doorways and alleys. Clark looked around with a questioning frown but couldn't see anything. "What's going on?"

"Ashley," said Clark and raced out into the torrential downpour leaving Lana to watch in bewilderment as he left her standing there.