Chapter Three

"No, it really did happen like that," laughed Chloe, ignoring Clark's laughing at her and shaking his head. "I haven't been camping since that night; I don't think I've ever been so terrified,"

"Chloe, we were trying to scare you all night. There was no ghost, it was just Pete and an empty soda bottle," laughed Clark, Lana burst into fits of laughter at this revelation while Lex smiled to himself, the odd chuckle escaping his lips. "I don't think I've ever laughed as much as I did that night, your face was a picture," Chloe scowled and picked up one of the cushions she was laying on, throwing it at Clark's head and missing my millimetres.

"Hey, no violence in the lounge, thank you," said Lex before throwing a cushion at Chloe and hitting her directly in the face. She threw the cushion back and laughed more, her stomach was in knots from laughing so much and tears ran down her cheeks. The party had been transformed from a boring social function to this hysterical madness in such a short space of time; who knew that the cosmopolitan, debonair and dignified Lex Luthor could get drunk and act like a kid with the rest of them?

Lex wasn't really surprised that a full decanter of his best scotch had gone and they were slowly working through the second; it had always been clear to him that it was a superior drink. Aside from the odd glass of champagne, scotch was the only alcohol to ever pass Lex's lips. Lana hadn't liked the taste at first, she didn't like the burning sensation in her throat but now, she was sipping constantly at her fresh glass. Clark was reluctantly joining in the festivities although the alcohol was hardly affecting him. Lex was most interested in Chloe; the blonde reporter that allowed herself to live in Lana's shadow, she was luxuriating on the carpet in front of the fireplace, Lex's baggy Metropolis Sharks sweatshirt drowning her. She was clearly quite drunk but it wasn't affecting her as it did most teenage girls, Lex was only too aware of how sixteen year old girls reacted to alcohol. They either became loud and obnoxious or they started crying at the slightest thing; Chloe was reacting like a woman, not a child. The alcohol had sharpened her wit considerably and Lex couldn't help laughing at her cheap one-liners aimed at Clark or Lana, she seemed wiser somehow, as if the scotch had imbibed her with the knowledge of its lifetime. In that over-sized jumper, Chloe Sullivan looked sexier than Lex had ever realised she could be, he smiled as he realised he still had a certain fondness for women wearing his clothing.

"Lex, are you still with us?" smiled Clark, Lex snapped out of his daydream and laughed. He had clearly been a little more distracted by Chloe's allure than he had even realised, the thought concerned him. Lex had never been denied anything in his life but Chloe's relative youth was certainly going to be a stumbling block if he decided to pursue her. He cast the thought from his mind; he didn't want to risk losing Chloe's friendship just because he was a spoilt little rich boy too used to getting his own way.

Besides, he wasn't blind, no matter what was going on around them, it was quite clear that both Chloe and Lana only had eyes for Clark Kent. He didn't blame them; Clark was obviously attractive and closer to their own age too. He smiled to himself; the scotch must have gone to his head if he was bemoaning the fact that two sixteen year old girls were more attracted to Clark than they were to him. And if he was thinking about how attractive Clark was, maybe it was time to stop drinking altogether. He laughed quietly to himself and stretched out in his chair, taking another mouthful from his glass, it was too good to stop drinking yet.

"Does this castle of yours have any good ghost stories, Lex?" asked Lana, curling her feet underneath her as she snuggled into the corner of the sofa a little more. Her glass of scotch balanced precariously on the arm; she reached out and grabbed it, fearful it would fall if she let go of it for too long.

"Not really," sighed Lex. "I think they got left behind in Scotland when it was moved. I did hear one when I was in Metropolis but it's a little too scary for you girls," Taking the bait instantly, Chloe sat up from her laying position and stared at Lex.

"Too scary for us girls?" she said, defensively. "I think me and Lana can take a lot more than you give us credit for," Lex smiled at Clark who was shaking his head; he had learned by now to never play the gender card when Chloe was at the table. "Come on, Luthor; give us your best shot,"

Lex smiled and leaned in slightly, creating a more enclosed space and began to weave his ghost story of an old man, a creaking floorboard and the office at the end of the hall in the Metropolis Luthorcorp building. Even Clark was rapt by the end of the tale, listening eagerly to the surprise ending of Lex's tale of jilted love, suicidal bankers and a world gone mad. At the end, Lana and Chloe were both in silence, staring up at Lex with wide eyes and slightly open mouths. Lana didn't want to admit that she had been petrified throughout the story while Chloe was trying to keep her mouth shut about the fact that Lex's voice had given her shivers. And not the kind that you usually get with ghost stories.

The low timbre of his voice had reverberated through her body and as he told the story, the orange glow of the fire had reflected in his eyes, giving them an eerie spark that Chloe had not been able to ignore. She was certain she had just stared into his eyes throughout the entire story but this was Lex Luthor, he wouldn't have noticed some little girl making eyes at him. She coughed slightly and fidgeted a little, she felt guilty although she had no idea why.

"Are you okay, Chloe? You look a little nervous," smiled Clark, Chloe looked up at him and laughed softly. "Ah, I knew you were a tough nut,"

"Lex, where's the bathroom?" asked Chloe, her voice a little louder than she had first anticipated. She only hoped that when she stood from the floor, her legs didn't give out beneath her and send her crashing to the floor again. How embarrassing would that be?

"I will show you, Miss Sullivan. We don't want the ghosts to jump out at you," smiled Lex, rising from his chair and offering her his hand. "Or Louis for that matter," Clark laughed and watched as Lex escorted Chloe out of the lounge and up the corridor.

"Did you call your Mom?" asked Lana, drinking from her full glass. "Tell her that we were staying over?"

"Yeah, Dad wasn't happy about it but I promised I'd do an extra hour of chores to make up for it tomorrow. I think that quietened him down a bit," he smiled, Lana laughed. It sounded a lot like Jonathon Kent; everyone in Smallville was fully aware that there was no love lost when it came to the Luthor family, particularly Lex. "Did you and Chloe tell Mr Sullivan?"

"We told him before we left," nodded Lana. "I knew there was no way we were escaping the Luthor Castle tonight, you know what Lex is like when we all get together. Remember last week at the Talon? We were all late home for dinner because he couldn't stop talking," Clark laughed at the memory.

"I think he just gets lonely holed up here all the time. It's weird, he can have anything he wants but I bet all he wants is to be normal. I don't know what I'd do if I was this rich," sighed Clark, looking around the room in awe. "There's so much stuff in this place, it's like a museum, not a home. I couldn't live like this,"

"We shouldn't judge, Clark. I'm sure Lex enjoys living here, no matter what we think about it," said Lana; she was always quick to defend anyone she liked. It was an aspect of Lana's character that Clark deeply admired and sometimes saw within himself.

"I'm not judging, I was just making an observation," he laughed and stuck his tongue out at her. She laughed loudly, the peals of laughter gradually dying away as she lay back into the sofa and relaxed. The two of them were silent for an age and Clark revelled in just how comfortable they had become. Gone were the days of his awkward nature and her shyness, they were best friends and they were comfortable together. They could talk about anything or, like now, they could just be quiet and enjoy being close. After a while, Clark frowned and looked across at Lana, she was almost asleep but opened her eyes when she felt Clark shift his weight on the sofa, she sat up immediately.

"What's wrong?" she asked, coughing slightly at the taste of the scotch at the back of her throat.

"Nothing, it's just that Lex and Chloe have been gone for a while. Do you think they're okay?" he asked, looking at the double doors as if they would walk back into the room any second, laughing and joking. "Maybe Chloe's being sick or something, she's had a lot to drink tonight,"

"Clark, Lex is with her. Don't worry," sighed Lana, closing her eyes again, unable to keep them open any longer. Clark watched as she drifted back into a dreamless sleep and stood, walking slowly to the doors. As he reached them, he could hear noise coming from the hallway; he pushed the door open slightly and peered through the gap. Chloe was leaning against the hallway wall while Lex stood in front of her, one arm extended to balance himself as they whispered.

"Mr Luthor, I really don't think that kind of language is appropriate in this situation," smiled Chloe, Clark noticed that she was flashing him her big smile. The one that lit up her entire face, making her even more beautiful than she already was. "But I think I'll let you off with it just this once,"

Lex leaned in and murmured something into Chloe's ear that Clark couldn't make out and then he watched as Chloe snaked her arms around Lex's neck and pulled him towards her, opening her mouth in readiness for his own. He couldn't believe it; Chloe and Lex, Lex and Chloe. He couldn't seem to move his legs, he felt glued to the spot, unable to look away as if witnessing a car crash. Chloe shifted her weight so she could move closer to Lex, pressing her whole body against him as he devoured her, kissing her neck and her earlobes as Chloe moaned softly.

Clark looked away and let the door close quietly before rejoining Lana on the sofa. He stared into the fire; how could this have happened? Why hadn't he seen it coming? Lex had never mentioned any interest in Chloe and Chloe had never said anything about her feelings for Lex. They were friends; they were friends just like he and Chloe were. Except that Clark knew he and Chloe were no longer friends, he couldn't lie to himself and after witnessing the scene in the hallway, he was certain that the lies were gone forever. He was jealous, he was jealous of Lex and not just of his charm and charisma and confidence but of the fact that he had Chloe. Lex had Chloe and Clark had nothing. He looked across at Lana and sighed, what was he supposed to do now? He leaned into the opposite corner of the sofa and closed his eyes, he may not have felt like sleeping but there was nothing else he could do to block out the mental images of Lex's lips on her throat and that noise of hers that he had wanted for himself.