Clark chucked his clothes into his bag. It was only a change of outfit for the trip to Metropolis with Lex but, despite his super powers, Clark had managed to make the task take at least half an hour so far. He shrugged it off, telling himself that the slow pace was to stop Chloe from getting suspicious and not because he was daydreaming about is weekend alone with Lex. Or what was supposed to be his weekend alone with Lex.

'Toothbrush, deodorant, clean socks...'

'I swear, Clark, if I didn't know better I'd be sure that you were getting ready to meet a girl for the weekend!' Clark couldn't stop the blush that flooded his cheeks; his face was so hot that he wondered just how any blood could be left to pump around his body. He managed to poke his tongue out at his friend who returned it with an added nose-thumbing.

'Lex is bringing his cousin, Laeton.'

'As a blind date for you?' Chloe giggled (as much as Chloe can giggle) but Clark froze with a new found fear. He'd been paranoid all night, since his meeting with Lex, that the cousin was just a device to keep some space between Lex and himself, a trick to keep the loved up teenage at arm's length. It hadn't occurred to Clark that Lex might try to palm him off on this Laeton girl. Clark couldn't deny that he'd been dreaming for months now about spending a cosy weekend with a Luthor but it wasn't Laeton.

'It's not like that. She just popped into town for the weekend and Lex doesn't want to miss her. Or miss me.' He couldn't help but smile at the last bit. He knew that Laeton's dropping by could have been a perfect excuse for Lex to cancel their date but he hadn't. That was proof enough that Clark was just being paranoid.

'Hey! Why don't I come along? Then it could be a double date.' Chloe laughed, rolling around on Clark's bed. She was having way too much fun to care that this wasn't how she imagined herself rolling on his bed.

You're not even slightly as funny as you think you are. Besides, it's not a date. Lex and I are just going to a concert and staying over. No big deal!'

'Whoa! I was talking about you and Laeton.' Chloe sat up seriously, a bemused look on her face as though she were looking at Clark for the first time. Clark cringed,

'Clark, is there anything that you want to tell me?' No! No! No! That's what he wanted to scream. That's what he was going to scream but when you're sixteen, a highly emotional denial is just as incriminating as a flat out confession.

Yes, I've been meaning to tell you for ages.' He tucked a stray lock of hair behind his ear and sat down heavily onto the bed, beside his friend. His voice was tinged with sadness and his eyes sparkled with what Chloe could only assume were tears of emotional pain. She hadn't really meant to tease Clark about Lex all of those times at school, about how they spend so much time together but now she felt guilty. She was now quietly confident that she knew what Clark was about to admit and felt more than a pang of pride at the idea that she was the first that he would tell.

'What is it, Clark?' Clark lowered his head and let his neat hair dangle by his eyes, staring at his feet to avoid eye contact as he whispered,

'Sometimes...'

'Yes?' She shuffled closer.

'Sometimes...sometimes I fly to school.' He laughed, wiping the tear from his eye, proud of his performance.

'You're evil, Kent! Now who thinks they're funny?' Chloe threw a pillow at Clark who had stood up again to continue packing his bag.

'You already know anything there is to know about me, Chloe.' Chloe looked away guiltily, knowing more that Clark would understand. Not that Clark actually noticed.

'Okay, soooo, toothbrush, deodorant, clean socks...'