Lex watched as the silver platters were set before him, filling the large oak table, each displaying a different kind of fruit. Mango, Guava, Kiwi, Lychee's, Blueberries and Peaches, every sweet delicacy that had been to hand in the kitchen had been requisitioned, chopped, diced and cubed to create the colourful assortment.

Hearing soft footsteps on the staircase at the end of the corridor, Lex motioned his servants away and looked to the doorway in anticipation. And then, like an angel, she was there, the morning sunlight streaming through the rooms high windows to bathe her in a golden hue. Seeing her, he smiled.

Chloe had slept surprisingly well, the terrors of the night dissipated by the easy friendship she seemed to have fallen into. She had been woken by the sunlight streaming into her room, leaching away the darkness just as Lex had taken her fear.

She had slept in her underwear, too embarrassed to ask if Lex had anything she could change into, and she felt unusually inadequate as she descended for breakfast dressed in her rumpled clothes. She had run her fingers through her choppy blonde hair and used water to smooth down its incessant wildness. She wished she was as beautiful as Lana, that every man she met fell head over heels in love with her, but instead all she ever seemed to get was 'wall of weird' material. And Dan, of course. The memory of him sent a chill down her spine and she felt her face blanche a little.

Entering the breakfast room and seeing Lex stretched serenely across his seat only added to her unease. But as he stood she felt the discomfort fade as his smooth voice greeted her.

"Good morning, I trust you slept well?" His face was open, friendly, as he pulled out a chair and gestured for her to sit.

"I did, thank you." She felt her lips pull into a wide smile and she graciously accepted the seat he had pulled out for her. Chloe surveyed the plates in front of her for the first time and her eyes widened.

"Wow, this is amazing!"

"I hope you like it. Some people like pancakes and waffles. I hear bacons quite popular too, but I always thought the best way to start the day was with natures bounty," and with a grandiose sweep of his arm he gestured to the fruit. He winked, betraying himself, and then shook his head. "But seriously, it does taste fantastic, so tuck in. You're going to need your strength today."

She looked over quizzically.

"What do you mean?" He picked up a strawberry and brought it to a point inches from his lips. Chloe tried not to stare.

"While you're here, you're my guest Miss Sullivan, and as such I afford you the same hospitality I show all my visitors." He bit into the strawberry and sweet red juice stained his lips for a moment. Chloe shook her head, surprised.

"Oh, I couldn't-." she started, but Lex interrupted.

"I insist. I have to admit, this whole… situation, has left me feeling quite helpless. Its not really something I'm used to. So this day is going to be as much about alleviating my self-centred wallowing and restoring my bruised ego as it is about you, ok?" He watched her earnestly, and Chloe knew for all his light-hearted jokes, what lay behind Lex's offer was a deep concern for her, and she was touched. She looked down at her dishevelled outfit.

"I'm afraid I'm not really dressed for 'outdoor activities'." Not to mention the bruises, she added internally. The purple and blue that had only started to show last night had now made her body their own, a visual reminder of her trauma.

He surveyed her, and Chloe wondered if he spent just a second too long assessing her, his eyes lingering over her slight figure a moment longer than was appropriate.

"I'm sure we can arrange something." He was pushing it, he knew, but what else was he to do? Through his whole life, Lex had always known that his family name would bring him whatever he pleased, but for the first time he could remember, he didn't know what to do. How could he fix a problem when he had no idea what the solution should be? As for the purple and blue that dotted her skin... He wished that he could take her pain from her, to save her from it.

And when he thought of her.Chloe… that elusive 'human connection' he had always heard so much about but that in the past had always evaded him had chosen to present itself in a high school girl – a girl who, he had to admit, was frankly too good for him. Past relationships had never presented the problems that this brief friendship had. The 'human connection' was beginning to complicate his simple life. But somehow, he didn't really mind. If pangs of inadequacy and helplessness were the trials he had to face to get close to this girl, then so be it.

"So what are the grand plans then?" Chloe asked as she filled her plate with exotic delicacies.

"That would be telling. But lets just say, it'll be a day you never forget," and with that Lex reached out, pinched a deep red cherry from her plate and popped it in his mouth.