"Clark?" Chloe jogged down the school corridor to catch up with her 'Romeo'. "Clark, wait up!"
Clark finally turned and wondered why Chloe would suddenly require his attention. It was probably some story for the Torch, but he would never refuse her a hand if he could help out. "Hey, Chloe. What's up?"
The towering teen slipped his bag over his shoulder and was surprised to see Chloe frown at him. He knew he had a knack for annoying girls rather than wooing them. Lana was the evidence of that, Chloe too at one point after the Spring Formal, but he really didn't know why he might have disgruntled the normally affable reporter right now.
"I think we need to talk about what you sent me this morning, and what it means?" Chloe raised a brow, and couldn't believe just how blasé about the whole thing her friend was being. "You know, the flowers?" She tried to remind him.
This time it was Clark's turn to frown. "Flowers?" For a moment he thought Lana may have received a bouquet and Chloe was presuming he sent them. The trouble was from Chloe's expression it was more than that. "What flowers?" He dared to ask.
Chloe put her hands on her hips and held back the urge to slap Clark right across the face. What am I doing? I never lose it this quickly normally. Get a grip, Sullivan! "You sent me roses this morning. I still have the card off them in my car as proof." She quelled the strange temper she was feeling while she waited for his reaction.
"It wasn't me, Chloe." The total look of innocence as Clark tugged his bag back when it slipped from his muscular shoulder was very convincing. "Maybe you have a secret admirer?"
"No, I don't!" I want you dammit! Why can you never see that? Or maybe now you're just regretting sending those flowers?
Chloe grabbed Clark by the plaid sleeve and virtually began dragging him to the school's parking area. To his credit, the teen allowed the tiny reporter to tug him along without putting up much resistance. This was a puzzle he needed the answer to as much as Chloe did.
The lot was mostly quiet. Chloe's little VW sat in the corner right where she had left it.
"Chloe, I still don't get this…" Clark looked up to the nearest building realizing he would be late for yet another class if Chloe didn't hurry. "Did Pete put you up to this because I said he should send Amy Harcourt roses?" A playful look crossed his face and he expected his tormentor to fess up.
Instead, Chloe yanked open her car door and fumbled around in the glove box. She was acting very out of character, and it was then that he saw it. Splattered across the soft top's hood was some brown dried substance that Clark couldn't help but think was blood.
He zeroed in on it just to be positive, but there was no way to tell for sure if it was Chloe's, or maybe an animal she had hit. "Chloe, did you have an accident in your car?"
Chloe whirled about, just as she grasped the tag from the blooms in her left hand. "I…um…no. Why?" She caught Clark's gaze just before he realized he was staring at the car's hood. "You think I hit my head, don't you?" Forcing the note from the flowers under his nose, she swiftly became angry again. "Well, explain this lover boy! Or were these meant for Lana and I got them by mistake!"
Clark shied back and took the note even though he was totally aghast at Chloe's wild attitude. He checked the small card, and although it had his initials, it definitely wasn't anything close to his handwriting. "I really didn't write this, Chloe!" He pleaded, and then asked more softly, "Are you sure nothing's wrong? You haven't had an accident? You were later than me for school today, and for once it wasn't because you were in the Torch's office, I checked earlier."
"I was just up late working on a story!" She retorted, some of the fire dwindling from her demeanor. "I was on a case!"
"And the blood on your hood?" Clark moved in front of the car and gestured to the brown stain. "Don't tell me it isn't yours, Chloe."
Chloe's face turned to exasperation, and she finally decided to tell her friend what had happened. Not that she was going to admit she'd made the whole flower business up. No way was he getting out of it with another Kent famous excuse of the week, even if it did sound plausible she'd jumped the gun with the roses. "I went over to Turner Enterprises last night and there was an explosion. I was thrown off my feet is all. Nothing life threatening. Now, back to the flowers?"
"An explosion isn't life threatening?" Clark moved to Chloe and took her by the shoulders, suddenly concerned she'd been more seriously hurt than she realized. He scanned her head while he continued talking, but there was nothing more than a slight gash to worry about. "Why isn't there anything in the Ledger about an explosion anyway?"
Chloe didn't know whether he believed her, or thought she was hallucinating. Either way, he was still denying the roses. "Maybe Turner Enterprises doesn't want their dirty meteor experiments coming out in the open…They're getting as bad as the Luthors."
Clark's eyes flashed with more sudden fear. "Meteor rocks were involved? Chloe you know what those things can do!"
Chloe did know, she'd been there first hand on too many adventures to even think about it, but no way was she a meteor freak and imagining all this. The very idea that he could think as much angered her even more and she stormed back towards the Torch in temper. "I thought you loved me, Clark…I actually thought you finally cared…"
Her words echoed in Clark's mind like a last lament, and as he watched the feisty reporter leave, in his heart he knew he had to discover what was going on.
Pete Ross high-fived his best friend, and then spun into a seat at the Talon on the opposite side of the table. "Clark, what's happening, man? It must be something big for you to pull me off my date with Amy."
Clark looked sheepishly around and then down at the table's surface. It was hard to tell Pete about Chloe, but he was the only one who might be able to help. After recounting what he knew, Clark at last looked up expectantly.
Pete whistled. "You think Chloe has been infected with something like at Luthorcorp that time?"
"I don't really know…" Clark kept his voice low, noticing Lana was scooting around the room with a tray. Right now, she was the last person he wanted hearing his suspicions. "But what if she is doing things and doesn't even know it? Maybe a concussion from the blow or something?" He toyed with his fingers, abruptly not wanting to let his gaze fall anywhere for fear of his ideas being realized through his guilty expression.
Pete guessed anyway. "You mean, maybe the evil green Kryptonite has struck again." He hunched forward. "Dude, what if this thing she encountered turns out to be some kind of love bug! I mean she is unconsciously trying to get the guy of her dreams…" There was a twinkle in Pete's eye even if he was trying not to joke.
"Love bug?" Clark groaned at the very idea. "Pete, stop looking at me as if you think we could patent this thing! We need to help Chloe, not improve all the guys at Smallville High's love lives!"
"Okay, okay." Pete waved a hand in apology, but still kept the project in mind for a later date. Meteors normally turned things bad. If this was finally some emerald green love potion with no evil side effects, well why shouldn't he market it?
Clark saw his chums eyes narrow and swatted him. "Pete!" Then he climbed from his seat and tugged at his friend to follow. "Come on, we have work to do. I can't have Chloe thinking I'm messing her around."
Pete joined Clark as they bounded out into the street, heading right to the flower shop next door. "Say, Clark?" He waited as his alien friend turned around, obviously expecting some fun comment. "What if it's not Chloe who's doing things and then forgetting? What if it's you?"
Clark ignored Pete's remark and simply frowned at his friend while continuing into the flower shop. As he approached the counter he noticed Shirley Morgan arranging a bouquet at the back of the room, which meant Ed her husband was still out on deliveries.
"Hi, Mrs. Morgan, I was wondering if you could help me out with a problem." Clark looked back at Pete with a glare that said go along with what I say.
Shirley Morgan smiled sweetly and left her flowers to join the two teens. "Why, Clark, I haven't seen you in here for a while. What is it, girl trouble and you need a quick bunch of my blooms to say sorry?"
Clark flushed a little. "Um, no ma'am, it's kinda the opposite in fact. Someone sent Chloe Sullivan roses from your store and put my name on them."
Mrs. Morgan realized where he was leading. "And you didn't send them?"
Clark shook his head. "I was wondering if you could tell me who did? I've seen the card and it has my initials, but I didn't write it…"
Shirley Morgan scooted to the shop's pc and quickly brought up the screen where she logged all her orders. As she scanned the page she looked over her glasses at Clark and Pete. "I can't tell you who sent the flowers. I have to keep my customers privacy. What I can tell you is I wrote out the card, because the order was e-mailed in this morning, and payment was made with a credit card…"
Clark glanced at Pete who was eyeing him suspiciously. He thinks I sent them! "Thanks, Mrs. Morgan. I guess I'll have to forever wonder who sent the roses."
The elderly woman obviously wished she could say more. What she didn't realize was that Clark was busily using his x-ray vision to see through the flat panel monitor and view the content the other side the screen. What he saw surprised even him. The order for the flowers had come from Chloe's own e-mail address, and had been charged to Gabe's account at the shop. It was no wonder Mrs Morgan hadn't wanted to say anything, because it appeared Chloe really had sent herself the roses!
"C'mon, Pete," Once he'd seen enough, Clark hurried his friend back out onto the high street and explained what he'd just seen. "Still think it's me who is forgetting things?"
Pete shrugged and stuffed his hands in his pockets as they walked. "Well you could just be making up what you saw…but I guess I'll trust you on this." He glanced up as Clark paused to throw his bag in the Kent truck and then jumped behind the wheel. "So what are you going to do now?"
"The only thing I can. I'm going to confront Chloe with what I know and hope she agrees to get some help." Clark tugged the heavy driver's door shut with a thunk and then sighed. "I'll catch you later, Pete. Wish me luck!"
Pete watched as the pick up trundled off down Smallville's High Street and was glad he wasn't the one about to confront Chloe.
Chloe had stormed home after her earlier meeting with Clark. It wasn't even the fact he denied sending the flowers that bothered her now. It was the idea that he presumed she was going crazy.
She pushed her door key hard in the lock and rammed open the door with a mighty shove. "Bump on the head, what does he think I am?" She huffed some more and then barged into the kitchen, throwing her car keys down and then stopping mid-step.
Gabe, her father was home early and was scratching his head in disbelief at what had just arrived by courier. "Honey, I think someone has a crush on you." He waited to see if Chloe had an explanation, but his daughter's jaw simply dropped open and she was unnaturally quiet.
The kitchen was full to the brim with yet more flowers, this time from an out of town florist. Several huge fluffy bears holding love hearts intermingled the bouquets, and two huge cards in the middle bore the words 'I love you…CK'.
"That's it!" Chloe eventually screamed. "I've just had enough of Kent the charmer!" She spun around and made a dash for the door, only to stumble straight into Clark's naïve arms.
Clark looked around and his jaw matched Chloe's from only moments earlier. "Chloe, we need to talk…"
The tiny blonde reporter glowered then glanced at her dad and nodded before barrelling outside after Clark. Gabe couldn't help a smirk back at what he thought was most definitely a lover's tiff brewing. Lord help Clark, if Chloe's anything half like her mother…
"I suppose you and Pete think this is still funny?" Chloe's arms wafted up in temper, but Clark grabbed them and took a much more serious tone now that he was out of Gabe's earshot.
"Listen, Chloe, I visited the florist's from this morning, and those roses were ordered using your e-mail address and your dad's account." He waited for a reaction and Chloe's furry seemed to ebb a little. "You have to see how this looks after what you told me happened last night."
"You think I've gone nutso with the rest of Smallville's finest meteor freaks!"
Clark let his grip tighten on her ever-so-slightly. "If you didn't order those flowers, and I didn't, then who did?"
Chloe still appeared skeptical. It was pretty obvious she hadn't ruled out Clark was still the culprit, but at least she was considering other possibilities now.
"Does anyone else have access to your e-mail address or your dad's account?" Clark prompted.
"No!" She wavered, suddenly unsure, "except I can send mail from my PDA. My dad just got it me. It's like the one Lex bought Lana," She screwed her nose up, hastily adding, "except it isn't pink…"
"Where is your PDA right now?" Clark was clutching at straws, but he really wanted to believe Chloe wasn't losing it.
"It's in my car." Chloe moved over to the VW and realized she'd left her keys in the house, "I forgot and left it charging in there last night, but it's been locked whenever I've gotten out. No one could get in and use it…"
Clark rolled his eyes and jogged over to the little red car. He leaned low, shading his eyes to see inside. Sure enough the device was still in its cradle charging, but that didn't mean anyone hadn't gained access to it. "Chloe, your car's a soft top. It's not exactly the greatest thing to leave things like that on show in. Getting in couldn't be easier than just tearing your top."
"But it's not torn!" Chloe walked around her prized vehicle and checked for signs of forced entry however small, but there were none. "Besides, what would anyone get out of sending me flowers and stuff on my own PDA from you? It's kind of lame." Are you trying to get out of this, Kent? She stared at his sinewy frame, Boy do I love you. Why oh why can't you just say you sent the roses!
Of course no one could here her thoughts. Instead, Clark pondered the facts. Either Chloe had been affected by the evil green meteor menace, or someone was trying to make it look like she was losing her mind. He stepped back from the window of the VW and offered his best explanation apart from insanity.
"What if someone wants you out of the way?" He crossed his arms. "If they think you saw something over at the Turner plant, maybe people wouldn't believe you if they thought you were losing your mind."
Chloe bit her lip. "I didn't see anything but some whacked out green explosion. And I can't prove it."
"Maybe they don't know that," Clark pointed out, "or maybe they just decided not to take any chances."
It seemed too contrived to Chloe, but it was either that, or think Clark was going insane. For now she thought she preferred the first option. "I'll grab my keys and go check the place back out. I'm betting they've totally gutted the place by now though. Are you coming too, Mr. Innocent?" She asked, diving back into the kitchen for her car keys.
Clark knew he had to go to prove he hadn't sent the blooms, and try to solve the mystery, but now he had another worry. If Turner Enterprises really had been experimenting with Kryptonite, he'd have to watch his step very carefully.
"I guess someone has to watch what your doing." He quipped, hoping Chloe really wasn't losing her mind.