Pete Pov – Last night
Chloe.
That name keeps reverberating through my skull. All I can see is her expression when I revealed my true feelings for her. There was a mixture there. A mixture I'm still trying to figure out. Part surprise, part guilt, and…………was there also part pleasure? Was it there or was it something my mind made up to make myself feel better? I don't know. All I know is that I have to find her. I have to bring myself in front of her and talk to her and see with my own eyes what she thinks, how she feels.
She couldn't have gotten very far. Her car is still here. But I've already walked all over the property and haven't found her. Now what?
I stood in the Kent's driveway trying to figure out what the next step would be, when I heard a rustling behind me. I quickly turned around tensed to defend myself. After a couple of years of friendship with Clark Kent, you learn to be on guard. But it seemed as if I did it for nothing because there was Chloe standing in her dark blue jeans. Her eyes matching the red in her tight shirt. She looked like she had been crying for a long time and my heart ached with the knowledge that I had partly been the cause of it.
"Hey Chlo." I whispered.
"Hey." She whispered back.
"Listen Chlo, I-."
"Pete I didn't mean to-."
I smiled slightly. "Go ahead Chloe. You go first."
Chloe didn't smile back. She fidgeted with the bottom of her shirt and bit her lip. Chloe was not a fidgeter. This must have been something important. My heart pounded as I waited for her to find the words she was looking for.
"Pete," She started finally, "I-I just want you to know that I truly had no idea you had feelings for me."
I nodded my head. "I know that Chloe."
"I'm not going to say that if I did, my feelings would have been different. I don't know how I would have reacted. I don't know that things would have changed. All I can tell you is how I feel now. And let me just say I feel like a complete and total jerk." She said with a little laugh.
I took a couple of steps toward her. "Don't say that. You're not a jerk."
"Doesn't mean I don't feel like one." She stopped what she was saying and looked everywhere but at me. I didn't say anything. I just waited for her to make the next move. Eventually she glanced at me and she seemed to make a double take.
"Wow." She said.
I stopped in my tracks. "What?" She was giving me this strange look and it was starting to make me feel self-conscious.
Chloe's eyes searched mine as she spoke. "You have this whole new look in your eyes. You're looking at me differently. You're not……..hiding anymore. Your eyes are so open. It's as if someone pulled up the shades and I can see right through you."
I caught myself from trying to close up again. I stood there and let her in. I wasn't going to hide anymore. It was now or never. I gulped. "What do you see?"
Chloe took three steps and we were standing right in front of each other. "I see a sweet, kind, loyal guy standing in front of me and I am in awe that he would even consider having feelings for a thoughtless, self-involved person such as me."
"Chloe, don't say that. You're none of those things." I took one of her hands in mine. I half expected her to pull away but she didn't.
Chloe shook her head at me. "Yes I am Pete. You're my best friend and I couldn't see what's right in front of me. I suck. Big time."
I couldn't help but laugh. "I'm glad you know how I feel Chloe. I know this is almost impossible for me to ask of you, but I really don't want this to change our friendship."
Chloe gave me a sad smile. "I'm sorry Pete it's too late. It already has."
I felt my heart drop. I let go of Chloe's hand. "I'm sorry to hear that."
Chloe picked my hand back up almost impatiently. "You don't get it Pete. I don't mean it's changed in a bad way." She took a deep breath. "Look I'm not going to pretend that I've fallen in love with you in a matter of a couple of hours. But I'm also not going to pretend that I don't feel something either."
My heart found it's way back into my chest and started to pound. "What do you mean?"
Chloe's fingers were drawing small circles on my hand and she hesitated before speaking. "I mean that when I heard how you felt I was surprised but I couldn't help but feel that something was there. I do have feelings for you Pete."
"But you don't love me." I said as a statement rather than a question.
"Pete, of course I love you. Maybe not in the way you love me but I love you for the person whose always been by my side. I love you for being my friend no matter what happens." Chloe took another deep breath. "And I'm willing to give it a shot if you'll still have me."
Whoa wait a minute did I hear right?
"You want…..you want to try seeing each other on a more serious level?"
Chloe smirked and I could see a little of her spark coming back. "I think that sums it up quite nicely."
I gave Chloe an incredulous look. "What about Clark?"
Chloe's face clouded. "I did a lot of soul-searching when I took my walk. I'm not going to say that I've done a complete 180 of my feelings but………….I think you've helped me realize that he's not the only one out there." Chloe took my other hand and stepped even closer to me. "Pete, I can't keep loving someone who will never love me back. He and Lana………..they belong together. It's time for me to move on. I should have done it a long time ago."
I searched for words to come out of my mouth, but they wouldn't come. As much as these words pleased me, I couldn't help but feel that I was a bit of a replacement.
As if she could read my mind, Chloe brought her hand to my cheek. "You will not be a substitute for Clark. You and he are two totally different people with different values and different perspectives. I know that."
As much as I wanted to revel in the hope she was springing from me, the pessimist in me kept persisting that she was just going to use me and every time we were together as more than just friends, she was going to wish I was Clark.
"I wish I could believe that Chloe. But you two have too much of a history."
Chloe laughed out loud. "Who has a history Pete? It's more like me and my fantasy Clark have too much of a history. We went out on one date and I've been acting like a fatal attraction wannabe ever since."
I laughed a little. "Aww Chlo."
"No. No pity. I want to try with you Pete. I want to see what could happen. Hey, you never know, you could spend a little quality time with me and realize I'm the weird reporter you've always known and find out there's nothing new and interesting to learn about me."
"Every day is a new and interesting day with you Chlo."
Chloe leaned towards me. "We'll take it slow?"
I leaned toward Chloe. "We'll take it slow."
I let my lips brush along hers slightly and reveled in the fact that at least one of my fantasies was coming to life. I pulled back slightly and saw Chloe had her eyes closed. She opened them and looked in my eyes before closing them and bridging the gap once again. The kiss this time was a little more passionate than the friendly peck we had before. It felt so good to kiss her that I didn't want it to stop. But I did anyway.
Slow remember?
As I broke away from Chloe, I realized I didn't want to leave yet. I didn't want to go home. I wanted to sit with her, maybe hold hands and just…….talk. Like we always have, but this time without having to stop myself from kissing her or holding her.
"Hey Chloe?"
"Hmmm?"
"Wanna take a long walk? This time together?"
Chloe smiled. "I'd love to."
End of Chapter Eighteen
