9.

Lex pushed Chloe against his desk softly. They were in his office in the Talon. Murmuring against her lips he spoke. "I say we take this else where. Do you mind?"

"No. I want you here."

"Here?" He smirked kissing her softly. "Where everyone and anyone could walk in."

Hopping up onto his desk she pulled him to her. "I'm not the one that doesn't want everybody to know about us." She spoke in whispers. They usually had to unless they were at the mansion. The one place they knew that they wouldn't get caught.

Chloe snapped out of her delirium. Daydreams were the one escape from the chaos that was her relationship with Lex.

If word got out that they were fooling around, she would be all over the tabloids. They wouldn't leave her alone, and Lex would be pinned a cradle robber. But Chloe didn't care anymore.

She was running out of excuses to tell people why her hair was often mussed up. Why she went through so many tubes of lip gloss. Why she has so many expensive pairs of underwear. She couldn't tell them that it was because she was sleeping with Lex. That once a month they went out of Kansas, where he wasn't that well known, to have a date and go shopping.

She just needed to talk to somebody about their relationship without getting any of the three looks of dis. Disappointment. Disapproval. Disgust.

As much as she loved him, she was tired of the hiding. The muffled noises. The inconspicuous touching in public.

Sometimes she just wanted to stand on top of the highest mountain top and declare her love for him. And sometimes she just wished that she could hide from her feelings.

Love and sex was a complicated twisted road that she had followed Lex down. If only they could get to the crossroads of declaration.

= ===

"R-R-Ray?" Alex gaped at her former boyfriend.

"Alex!" Raymond Alvarado said running to embrace her.

She held on to him as if she wasn't going to let him go. He was a piece of Paradise Valley that she was glad to see. But it brought up emotions that she wasn't sure she wanted to be feeling now.

"What are you doing here? What about school? More importantly, does your mother know where you are?" She asked pulling away from him. She studied his chocolate brown eyes carefully.

"My mom got transferred to the LuthorCorp main offices in Metropolis. It was a big conspiracy between the mothers." He added with a smile.

"Figures. Only the mothers would do something like that." She said smiling. "I have so much to tell you. Do you want to walk to town with me? We're having dinner with the neighbours tonight, or I'd invite you out for dinner." She laughed giving him another hug.

"It's alright, I have to head back to Metropolis tonight anyway. Mom's picking me up in two hours."

"Two hours! That's hardly enough time for us to catch up."

"Alex, I saw you two weeks ago."

"I know, but more has happened. I have so much to talk to you about."

"And I thought you were the girl who didn't like to talk."

"Its Kansas, there's only talking to do around here." She said with a smile.

"Good point. I have my car here, so tell me where to go. I'm your bitch for two hours." He said smiling.

"Ray," she laughed, "you've always been my bitch."====

"Lana, I'm sorry, but I just don't see us going anywhere." Clark rehearsed to the mirror in the men's room. "Lana, I don't feel our spark anymore." He tried again. "I can't do this anymore, Lana, I'm sorry."

"Clark? Is that you?" Lana called into the bathroom.

"Yeah." He said turning around to the door. He had to hold back the laugh when he saw her. Her hand was over her eyes, shielding them from the contents of the men's room. "Lana, I'm the only one in here. You can open your eyes." He said with laughter in his tone. Closing his eyes, and taking a deep breath he prepared himself.

"Who were you talking to then?" She asked peering around the room.

"Me." She eyed him suspiciously. "Lana, I have something I have to talk to you about."