ok...i know this has been a long time coming. but i think i had told some of you that i would make it up to you. well...i have. this is the longest chapter i have ever written. (it's 12 pages in Word). that's why it took longer to write today than it usually does. but anyway...here is Part 4 to Something For Lois. hopefully, it answers a lot of questions. some you may have to hunt for...but they're there
oh, and some of this may be a teeny tiny bit repetitive. after all, it's taken from chapter 8 of Lilies when Chloe visits Lois at her apartment the morning after Clark has surprised Lois in the Talon theater with Breakfast at Tiffany's. but i promise that this is strictly Chloe's POV. so, hopefully, it makes sense and isn't too repetitive for anyone.
Author: Alison
Disclaimer: Characters belong to DC, WB, AlMiles, etc, etc, etc. I only own the story, so please don't take that away from me.
Part 4
She loved her little hometown. She really did. But there were times, like now, that she hated coming home.
She didn't want to talk to Lois. Ugh. Why couldn't Clark superspeed in and get the picture? Was it so hard? Of course, he probably would find a way to screw it up anyway. 'I'll just leave it to the professional,' he had said, with that stupid Kent grin. But she fell for it. Like she always does.
She pulled her little red VW Bug around and into the back alley of the Talon. Part of her hoped Lois wouldn't be home. But it was Saturday morning. And it was noon. Chances were Lois had either just gotten up or was still sleeping. She'd bet money on the latter.
As she stepped out of the car and turned to walk up the steps into the side entrance, the door suddenly flew open.
"Oh, hi, Mrs. Kent."
"Hey, Chloe."
The woman struggled with two large bags of trash as she ambled down the steps.
"Here, Mrs. Kent, let me help you with those."
Chloe took one of the bags out of the woman's hands as they made their way to the dumpsters.
"Thanks, Chloe. I didn't realize how much of a mess people can make in one night."
Chloe shot Mrs. Kent a quizzical look as they threw the two bags over the side of the dumpster.
"What'd you mean?"
"All of this came from the theater last night. Clark just finished cleaning it about an hour ago."
Chloe's head shot up.
"Clark? Is he still here? And why was he cleaning the theater?" She paused and smiled. "Was he being punished?"
Mrs. Kent smiled and shook her head.
"No, he had some chores to do. But he said he wanted to clean the theater. Something about doing it for Lois."
For Lois? An alarm went off in her head. Why did that phrase keep popping up? And why was Clark always involved?
"For Lois? I don't understand."
Mrs. Kent sighed and shrugged her shoulders.
"Well, to tell you the truth, Chloe…neither do I. I don't know what's gotten into him lately. But I'm pretty sure Lois has something to do with it. I think she's had more of an effect on him than he's willing to admit."
And so, the mother knows. She'd always heard about a mother's intuition. But a small part of her hoped the older woman was wrong.
Chloe faintly smiled and dropped her gaze.
She knew it was bound to happen sooner or later. After all, he was an attractive
guy…charming…somewhat intelligent…and…her best friend. And, even if he couldn't see it, she knew his feelings for Lois were becoming more apparent.
She just wanted to get the picture and leave. But she didn't want to make a scene. She had to act normal. Especially around her cousin, who could smell a ruse a mile away.
The two women made their way back up the steps and inside the building. She had to go upstairs now. She had to get it over with.
She turned to Mrs. Kent who'd finished washing her hands in the nearby sink behind the counter.
"Have you seen Lois today, Mrs. Kent?"
Drying her hands on a paper towel, Mrs. Kent shook her head.
"No, Chloe. She's not scheduled to work until later this afternoon. I think she might still be upstairs. Clark said she had a long night last night."
There it was again. Clark's name just dropped in there like it belonged. It felt like it was moving too fast. But maybe that's the way things happen as you get older. She just wasn't sure if she was ready for it. Not yet, anyway.
She smiled a feeble smile and nodded her head.
"Okay, thanks. I'll just go see if I can find her then."
Mrs. Kent smiled and nodded, then turned to take the order of a waiting couple.
Everything seemed to go in slow motion as she turned and made her way through the early afternoon crowd and up the stairs.
What was happening in her little world? Everything she'd known for the past few years seemed to be slipping away.
She missed her cousin. She loved Lois like a sister. But she felt like somehow she was drifting away from her a little. But why? Was it just because of the events of the past few days?
And then there was Clark. Her best friend. Her first love, though she wasn't his. She didn't talk to Clark as much as she used to. They both had their own classes at their own universities. They had their own lives. But he'd asked her to help. And she couldn't refuse. Not even for the sake of her own sanity.
As she reached the top of the stairs, she remembered her cell phone. She'd hate for it to sound off in the middle of her mission. Although, Lois could probably sleep through anything, she didn't want to take the chance. She shoved her hand in her pocket, pulled out the phone and, pushing a few buttons, turned it to vibrate mode.
She grasped the door knob. It was still locked. That meant Lois probably wasn't up yet. She reached in her bag and grabbed her trusty MasterCard out of her wallet. Slipping it in between the door frame and lock, she jiggled the handle and card simultaneously as the door popped open. Too easy. You've done this too many times, Sullivan.
Quietly opening the door, she crept in and gently closed the door behind her.
After they had purchased the marker and provided the information for engraving, Clark had given her instructions on where to locate the picture in Lois' apartment. He said it should be in the top of an old dusty photo box under the coffee table. Glancing in Lois' bedroom, she noticed her cousin still sound asleep. She knew her too well.
She made her way to the couch and sat down. Reaching under the coffee table, she carefully pulled out the box and set it next to her. She lifted the lid off the old box and set it aside. There it was, right where he said it would be.
Chloe slowly reached in the box and lifted it out. She studied the woman whose face she'd almost forgotten. She didn't remember too much about her. She was only four years old when she died. But she knew she was smart and sweet and always made chocolate chip cookies on Saturday night. Or at least that's what happened when Lois' family came to visit her and her dad in the States.
Funny those things that stick with you.
Chloe sighed and smiled. This was more than Clark and Lois. This might've been Lois' mom, but it was Chloe's aunt. And she deserved something just for her.
She placed the photo in the side pocket of her bag and zipped it closed. She looked at the clock in the kitchen. It was twelve thirty. She didn't really want to talk to her, but something was pushing her. She wanted to know Lois' side of the story. Besides, she had promised her cousin that she would talk to her today.
She stood, grabbing her bag, and walked to the kitchen. She set her bag down on the barstool, lifted out her laptop, set it on the counter, plugged it in and turned it on. It would be her safety net if Lois suspected anything. Besides, she really did have work to do. But that would probably have to wait until she got back to Met U.
She knew her cousin pretty well, and she knew the one thing that could get her up and moving was coffee. Heck, anyone who knew Lois knew that vital fact.
Chloe walked to the coffee pot, put in a new filter, dumped the grounds in, poured in the water and flicked on the switch. Such a ritual she could do it in her sleep.
She turned around and grabbed today's copy of the Daily Planet out of her bag. She'd picked it up as she was leaving Metropolis that morning. She glanced over the front page. Nothing that fantastic today. But it was Saturday, after all. Which reminded her that her cousin was still in bed after noon on a Saturday.
The coffee pot began to fill and Chloe grabbed a mug out of the cabinet. She poured herself a cup, grabbed her newspaper and headed into Lois' bedroom.
She stopped at the foot of her cousin's bed. She could hear her cousin mumbling as she entered the room.
"Clark."
What?
Chloe's heart sank.
Was Lois dreaming about Clark? Chloe studied her cousin for a moment.
The covers on the bed were thrown off and lay in the floor. Lois was sweating and twitching in her sleep. She'd remembered how Lois would have nightmares as a child, especially after her mother died. When she visited Chloe would lay awake next to her, listening to Lois sob in her sleep. But this didn't seem to be like that. Lois wasn't crying. But she did keep repeating one word…er…name.
"Clark."
Chloe sighed. She had her answer. The answer to the question she'd had since he had called and said he wanted to do something. Something for Lois.
She knew that whatever had happened between them the night he stayed with her must've been…special…for lack of a cheesier word. It was apparently something that neither she or Lana could've done for him. And whatever it was, it had an effect on both Lois and Clark, even if neither realized it.
She had to wake her up. She would just play intrepid reporter. She knew the part well.
Okay, Sullivan. Here goes.
"Lois."
She paused and watched as Lois stirred a little more in her sleep.
"Lois."
She sighed. She could throw cold water on her like she used to when they were kids. But, frankly, she feared a bit more for her life now than she did back then.
Chloe watched as Lois raised her arm and murmured something. The one time she didn't have her camera.
She rolled her eyes and took a deep breath.
"LOIS!"
Her cousin sat straight up in bed, gasping for air. Her eyes went wide as she looked as if she'd just come back to life.
"Good to see you finally awake, cuz. Didn't realize you were gonna sleep til noon. I've been standing here screaming your name for ten minutes."
She wanted to talk. Now she knew that both Clark and Lois felt something for each other. But she had to find out as to exactly what that something was.
Chloe grinned as her cousin glared at her, still attempting to catch her breath. She had things to do today. But first, she had to get Lois out of bed and up and talking.
"Come on, get up. We've got a week's worth of gossip to catch up on."
Okay, so she wasn't going to come right out and say, 'Actually, I want to talk about you and Clark and your feelings for each other because it's driving me crazy since I can see it and neither of you can.' She and Lois did have boundaries, after all.
Chloe turned to leave Lois' bedroom, and called over her shoulder as she walked away.
"I'll just make myself at home while you get dressed."
As Chloe rounded the corner into the kitchen, her cell phone vibrated in her pocket. She set her mug on the counter and reached in her pocket for her phone. Clark Cell flashed on the ID. Oh great. Not now.
But she flipped it open anyway.
"Hey."
"Hey, Chloe. Is this a bad time?"
"Well, kinda. The fox is in the hen house right now."
"You're…what?"
She sighed. After all, she did say that he was only somewhat intelligent.
"Nevermind. What do you need?"
"I just wondered if you got the picture yet?"
She set the paper on the counter and turned around to glance in the bedroom. Lois was sitting up in bed. She'd be in the kitchen soon, especially if she smelled coffee.
"Yeah, I got it. I'll make a copy and deliver it where it needs to go later this afternoon."
"Okay. I just wondered if it would be alright if I stopped by later tonight and picked it up. I have something else I'd like to do with it."
Chloe hopped on the barstool and began mindlessly searching for something on her laptop. She had to make it appear like she was doing work for the Planet or Met U or something. The last thing she wanted to do was give Lois cause for suspicion.
"Um, yeah, sure that's fine. Just give me a call later."
She saw Lois shuffle into the kitchen out of the corner of her eye.
"Sure, Chloe. And maybe we can discuss some other things, then, too."
Chloe paused. Other things? That boy was an enigma. If only time and place were different, she'd ask him about it. But it would have to wait.
"Yeah, okay. I'll just talk to you later, then."
"Okay. And thanks again, Chloe. You know none of this would be possible without you."
How did he do it? Just when she was ready to strangle him, he says the one thing she loves to hear, but never expects. How would anyone else ever measure up?
She smiled as her heart melted.
"Yeah, I know."
"I'll call you later. Bye, Chloe."
"Bye."
She flipped her phone shut. She sat there, staring at her laptop screen, gathering her thoughts. She had to get on with the task at hand. She set her phone on the counter and kept her eyes on her computer screen while she spoke.
"I already made coffee." She glanced up at her cousin, who was already reaching for a mug and the pot of coffee. "Hey, I told you to get dressed."
"Mmhhmm."
Lois looked out the window and kept her back to Chloe. She knew her cousin wasn't a morning person. But c'mon. It was twelve thirty in the afternoon. Something was up and she was gonna figure it out.
"Mmhhmm? What does that mean?"
Lois didn't say anything. This just wasn't like her. Usually Chloe couldn't get her to shut up.
"Lois? Are you okay?"
Lois still didn't say anything. She didn't even acknowledge Chloe's words. Chloe was beginning to worry that something more serious might be wrong.
Should she bring up the other night? The night they spent together? She just didn't want to bring up his name. If the sheer mention of his name brought a reaction from Lois, she didn't know how she would respond.
She took a deep breath.
"I talked to Clark."
Lois spun around, her eyes wide.
"Really?"
And there it was. What she was hoping wouldn't happen. Keep it together, Sullivan.
"Yeah. He said he stayed here with you a couple of nights ago."
Chloe paused. She dropped her gaze before she continued.
"Is there something you need to tell me?"
She looked back up at her disheveled cousin. Lois' hair was down and messy and her pajama pants were twisted. Her pajama top was also buttoned wrong.
She was a complete mess. Chloe had never seen her cousin like this before. Well, not since they were kids. But that was because of Lois' mom. This can't all be about the anniversary. Can it?
"What? No, Chloe. He stayed here, yes, and slept on the couch. He came over to bring me some of Mrs. Kent's meatloaf. I asked him to stay because it was late and the roads were bad."
Lois paused and took a breath before continuing.
"I was having a rough day that day. That's all."
Lois stopped and looked down into the liquid in the blue ceramic coffee mug.
Chloe slowly nodded her head and gave a feeble smile.
"Yeah…I know. You have that same rough day every year."
Now she felt bad. But there were things that still didn't seem right.
Lois smiled.
"Yeah, weird how that happens, isn't it?"
Chloe gently laughed.
"Yeah, it is." She dropped her smile and stopped before asking her next question, searching Lois' face for any visual clues. "But, you never answered my first question. Is everything okay?"
Lois walked over to the couch and sat down, pulling one leg under her. She took another sip of coffee.
This looked like it was about to get interesting. Chloe hopped off the stool and closed her laptop. She crossed her arms and strolled over to the couch and sat, pulling both legs under her, next to her cousin.
"I don't know what's wrong with me, Chlo. I ought to be able to handle this. I'm tougher than this. But this week…I don't know. It all started when he showed up."
Oh great, not him again. She tried to maintain her innocence of the situation and looked confused.
"He who? Clark?"
Chloe braced herself for whatever possible answer that question would bring. She watched as her cousin fidgeted with her pajama buttons.
"Yeah. He showed up here that night. My night. The one night…no, strike that. The one day of the year that I cry. You know me, Chloe. I don't cry except on that day. But he moseyed on in here and I couldn't do it. I couldn't have my night."
Chloe saw the tears forming in Lois' eyes. She tried to hold back those of her own.
"And look at me! I'm doing it again! Ever since that night I've been doing this!" Lois quickly wiped her eyes. "He showed up and saw me like this. He saw me at my weakest." She took a breath. "You should've seen me the night before last. Not only did I cry all the way back from the Kents', but apparently I also cried all night while I was asleep. If the General had been here, he would've yelled til he was blue in the face, telling me how weak I was."
Lois paused to sniff. Chloe put a comforting hand on Lois' arm. Her cousin was suffering. And all she could do was think about herself and her own insecurites. She silently berated herself for it.
"I'm sorry, Lois. I should've been here for you this week. But I know that you usually don't want to talk to anyone around this time of year. That's why I didn't call you that day. And I'm sorry I couldn't talk to you more yesterday, but I've just had a lot of things going on at the Planet and classes are killing me. Plus, I've got this other project I'm working on…"
Please don't pick up on it…please don't pick up on it…
"No, Chloe. It's okay. I'm not blaming you. It's just been a strange week. Well, stranger than usual, anyway. Smallville's been especially nice to me lately, which is freaking me out. It's probably just because it was the anniversary. I had to explain it to him when he showed up unannounced. And can you believe he actually sat here until three in the morning wanting to know all about Mom and Dad? How they met, her favorite flowers, has the General always been so intimidating? He wanted to look at all my pictures. He even wanted to know about my childhood. It was so…strange."
Chloe smiled. It really was all falling into place.
"And do you know what he did last night? Well, first of all, Mister Always Has An Excuse said he would be here yesterday afternoon. Not that I was waiting for him, by the way."
Chloe grinned. Lois could be a hard read sometimes, but there were some universal signs women had when it came to guys. Especially their feelings towards guys.
She broadened her smile as Lois continued.
"What? I wasn't. He just said he would be here and he didn't show."
Chloe knew she was caught and threw up her hands in mock surrender and smiled.
"Okay, okay. So, you say you weren't waiting on him when you were waiting on him?"
"Ye-…No!"
Chloe could get under her skin like no one else. Well, no one else, apparently, other than Clark.
Lois sighed and closed her eyes, continuing on with her story.
"So, anyway, he decided to waltz in downstairs after we closed. He tried to help me clean up the theater, which turned into a complete disaster. He kept spilling coffee that I had to mop up. Then, he spilled it all over himself." She paused and grinned. "Well, actually, that was pretty funny."
Chloe laughed and shook her head. Her cousin always did manage to find the humor in the wrong situations. But she had to draw more about last night out of Lois.
"So, he just showed up to help you clean the theater?"
Lois gave Chloe a confused look.
"Well, actually, I'm not sure why he showed up. But it's what happened later that was so…I don't know. Nice? I'm still trying to figure out what his ulterior motive was. There had to be one."
It was Chloe's turn to be confused.
"What do you mean? What did he do?"
"We were cleaning. He spilled coffee down his jeans. I laughed. Then he said something about cleaning the rest of the theater later today, that we didn't need to clean it all last night. Before I knew it, he had walked to the back of the theater and into the booth. 'Moon River' started playing and--"
Chloe closed her eyes. That's why he wanted to know.
"- -'Breakfast at Tiffany's' was playing on the screen."
"Uh, yeah. How'd you know?"
Chloe sighed and rubbed her head with her fingers. Why didn't she see it coming? She should've figured it out when she ran into Mrs. Kent earlier.
That settles it, then. She was moving up to three non-fat mocha lattes a day. She obviously wasn't getting enough caffeine to keep her brain cells clicking.
"Well, Clark called me a couple of days ago. He asked me some really strange questions. Mostly about you."
Lois set her mug down on the coffee table and turned to face Chloe.
"About me? What questions about me?"
Did she want to tell her? Not really, but maybe it would answer some things.
"Well, favorite movie was one of them."
Lois sighed and nodded her head.
Chloe looked at her cousin as she continued.
"Lois, maybe he just wanted to do something nice for you…especially after this week. You said yourself it was probably just because of the anniversary."
She knew if Lois didn't agree, that it might cement the fact that she had feelings for him. She prayed Lois would agree. But would she understand if she didn't?
"Yeah, I know. And it was nice. It was just…unexpected. But, something just doesn't feel right. But, at the same time, it does." Lois stopped, turned to her cousin and smiled. "Am I making any sense?"
Chloe grinned. She understood Lois better than anyone. And somehow, she knew what she was going through. At least as far as being confused by Clark. That was nothing new to her.
"Believe it or not, Lo, you're making perfect sense."
Lois smiled.
"My emotions have just been like a roller-coaster this week, Chlo. Sometimes, it's been terrifying. Other times, nauseating. It's just all been so…weird. And completely out of the ordinary for me."
Chloe grinned. She had her answers and then some. But she had to get going. She'd safely gotten the picture, which had been her main goal anyway. She moved her legs out from under her and stood, walking towards the kitchen.
"Oh, come on. Lois Lane can handle anything. Besides, after living in this town for a year, you ought to be used to 'out of the ordinary.'"
Lois laughed softly.
"You would think so, wouldn't ya, Chlo?" Lois stood and crossed her arms while walking towards Chloe. "Now, if only I could get used to this recurring nightmare about that guy in the red cape. That still scares me."
Chloe smiled. She unplugged her laptop and put it in her bag. She grabbed her cell phone and the folded Daily Planet. She wanted to roll her eyes, but didn't want to be mean. After all, her cousin was in love and didn't even know it. She'd cut her some slack. But only a little.
"Yeah, boy, Lois. A guy in a red cape. Sounds pretty scary to me." She flung her bag on her shoulder and reached for her keys. Lois shot her an unappreciative look. Chloe sighed and smiled. "Don't worry about it, Lois. It's just a dream."
Okay, so maybe she said it more for herself than for Lois. But how often do dreams come true anyway?
"Yeah, right. It's not your dream. Or nightmare. If it's scary, it's a nightmare, right?"
Chloe laughed. Lois could be so intelligent about everyone else's situations, yet so naïve when it came to her own.
"Well, Lois, I wish I could stay longer and help you complete that thought process, but I've got a ton of work to do. Call me later?"
Lois smiled.
"Sure. I've gotta get going anyway. I've still got half a theater to clean up this afternoon. And I'll probably be doing it by myself. You know he won't show. Something will come up, and he'll apologize later for not being there."
Chloe just smiled and shook her head. She'd let her find out on her own.
"I don't know, Lois. He's surprised you before."
Lois sighed.
"Why does everyone keep saying that? Smallville is so predictable. Sure, he has his moments, like last night, but it's nothing to get excited about. Those moments are just flukes. He'll never change. He's just the same old humdrum farmboy who's gonna be stuck in this town for the rest of his life."
Chloe grinned. If only Lois knew. But that conversation was for a later time. And somehow she didn't think she'd be the one to tell her.
"If you say so, Lois. I just think Clark will surprise all of us one of these days."
Lois rolled her eyes.
"Whatever, Chlo. You're more optimistic than I am."
Chloe laughed. Yep, Lois had no idea what was right in front of her.
Lois pulled her into a hug as she continued.
"I'll give you a call later. Thanks for being my alarm clock this morning."
Chloe laughed.
"Anytime, cuz. Okay, I gotta go. I've gotta be back in Metropolis later to finish an article."
Well, she actually had to get back so the guys could plaster the picture on the marker...but Lois didn't need to know that right then.
She pulled away from Lois and reached for the door.
"Okay, I'll talk to you soon."
"Okay."
"Bye, Baby."
"Bye, Lo."
Lois shut the door behind her. Chloe paused at the top of the stairs. It was now that she should've cried. She should be fighting back the tears. But she wasn't.
She'd only wanted to get the picture and leave. But after seeing Lois so confused and unLois-like, she realized that her cousin had feelings for Clark. And the best part was, she didn't even know it.
She couldn't quite figure it out. But for some reason, she left the tiny apartment feeling…happy. And she finally began to understand what she had to do.
She had to let go. This time…for good.