A/N: Ah, yes. The cliffhanger ending where dire results are predicted, but no real explanation is put forth. Fabulous!

Chapter 10

Chloe and Clark flew away from the Fortress of Solitude, concerned by what Jor-El had revealed to them. They had both been concerned with the Kents' behavior… not to mention Lois and Lana practically attacking Chloe when they'd first walked into the Talon. But whenthey had realized that Clark's word became their law, they figured things would be on a certain status quo until they found the solution. However, Jor-El had warned them that demonstrations of dedication would most likely increase with possible violent consequences. It put even more urgency on their mission to find the source.

The trip was as quick as Clark could make it and it seemed as if only minutes had passed since they had left. Not a word had been exchanged between them while they had thought furiously about different possiblesolutions. Chloe clutched in her hands the copy of the antidote transmission Jor-El had given them and she wondered if it would do more harm than good. She hadn't gotten up the courage yet to discuss her suspicions with Clark. It didn't help that she was still mortified about her conduct while she was under the influence of the Transmission. So deep was she in her thoughts that she was totally startled as they landed near Crater Lake. "Clark, what are we doing here?"

He didn't answer her for a moment as he scanned the nearby forest for any eavesdroppers. He sank to the ground wearily, still silent. Chloe looked at him in concern and had been about to ask her question again when he finally answered. "I can't face them right now, Chlo."

His dilemma made itself clear to Chloe immediately and she found herself almost panicking at his obvious defeatist attitude. She sank down beside him and leaned against him as if to share comfort with him but not in an insistent way. She was gratified when his arm came around her shoulders and pulled her close. They looked out at the quiet water for a moment before Chloe responded. "Clark, you can't blame yourself."

He laughed, but in such a cynical way that it almost took Chloe's breath away by its sound of hopelessness. "Who can I blame, Chloe? The Transmission seems dedicated to turning the entire planet into my loyal subjects. If I had just put the Elements together when Jor-El had first told me about them, this never would have happened! Or if I had just never come here…"

Chloe began to see red as each "what if" was posed. On the last one, she pushed him down onto the ground and sat on his stomach to keep him still. She knew he wouldn't toss her off and risk hurting her, so she was feeling pretty confident. "Clark Kent, you just stop that right now. Do you want me dead?"

His eyes snapped to her face in shock. "What are you…? Of course not, Chloe! What made you say such a thing?"

She wanted to smile, but maintained her stern face. "How many times have you saved my life, Clark? How many times over would I be dead if you hadn't come here and grown up here?"

Clark grimaced. "But Chloe, you wouldn't have been in danger if the meteor rocks that landed with me hadn't been here…"

"I beg to differ! That cop had not been under the influence of kryptonite and if Lana hadn't seen me in those weird visions and you hadn't dug me out, I would have suffocated in that metal coffin!" She shuddered slightly at the memory, but shoved it back behind the door she kept all the memories she wouldn't allow herself to dwell on.

Clark could only gape at her. He wanted to argue the point with her, but she was absolutely right. That cop had gone crazy all on his own and if it hadn't been for him and Lana's meteor-induced visions, Chloe could have suffocated in that coffin. He'd been so freaked out about losing her that he could only focus on her. It had been the reason he'd been brave enough to ask her to the dance… which he had then ruined because he'd had to go running after Lana. "I hadn't meant…"

Chloe finally allowed her smile to come through. "I know you didn't, Clark, but a life lived by 'what ifs' is hardly a life at all. You have to enjoy life as it comes and face the difficulties as best you can." She made to get up off his chest, but his hands came to rest on the outside of her thighs and she stilled to stone.

He smiled at her… but in a shy and uncertain way. "Have I been living by 'what ifs', Chlo? What about my responsibilities?"

She tried to ignore her response to his touch and rolled her eyes. "Clark, there have only been a few times in your entire life where you've let everything around you go to pot while you did what you wanted." She didn't specify the summer of their sophomore year, but they both knew that was a significant part of what she was talking about. "And don't think I'm forgetting about you losing your powers at the beginning of the summer."

Clark closed his eyes. It had been a wonderful time, but he'd also felt the differences more painfully than he'd ever admit to anyone. "Chloe…"

"Clark, you have to let me finish. You kept telling me that you were happy without your powers and that you were satisfied to not play hero anymore. But you still did… It was like you couldn't help yourself." She smiled and cupped his cheek with her palm. "Clark, you could have just let the police handle Lee and the Wonder Twins… or insisted that we go straight to the Sheriff when Gabriel called me. But you didn't. Instead, you ran around with me, still trying to save our town and the ones we love. You've always been a hero, Clark. It's not about you being an alien… It's not about you having superpowers. It's really about who you are deep down, Clark, and how you were raised."

Clark looked up at Chloe and thought she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. They may have had their disagreements, but she'd always believed in him. She'd always trusted, evenbefore she knew about his powers, that he would always do his best to save her. He sat up slowly and smiled as she slid down his chest until she was sitting on his lap. She'd made a little squeak when he'd moved, but he kept her from toppling over. Her hand had dropped to his arms and he moved his hand to her cheek. As he brought his face closer and closer to hers, he whispered, "Chloe…"

As their lips edged closer and closer together, her eyes fluttered shut. "Clark…" she breathed a second before their lips connected. The moment his lips touched hers, Chloe's world burst into Technicolor. She suddenly felt as if she'd been roaming through her life half-asleep. It was a simple kiss, but rocked her world off its axis. She felt as if all her senses had developed superpowers of their own and she could clearly smell the pine trees around them and the water of the lake.

Clark tugged her as close as he dared, always aware of how fragile this strong woman actually was. His heart sang as he realized that she was right there with him… that she wasn't being influenced in any way to return his kiss. He smiled and Chloe surfaced to look at him. "I wasn't sure…" he stuttered, suddenly shy of his best friend.

Chloe was shocked… absolutely and completely shocked. He wasn't… He'd been her first love in Smallville and it really hadn't changed over the years. "Clark," she sighed again and would have tackled him to the ground if he hadn't been super strong. She kissed him again and put every emotion into that kiss to tell him.

With her abandon, their walls of restraint were suddenly down. Her fingers trembled as she struggled to unbutton his shirt. Each time her fingers touched his skin, she could hear him gasp a little and it made her smile. For neither of them was this sort of thing new… but she found that she was getting shy as his hands also reached for the buttons on the shirt she was wearing. At the top button, he pulled back and looked at her with questioning eyes. She melted with the vulnerability in them and could have denied him absolutely nothing. It didn't take long before both his shirts laid on the ground beside them.

Chloe began pressing kisses along his collarbone and she could feel his temperature rising with each kiss. Before she could go any further, he brought her up for another soul-shattering kiss. She wondered hazily if she would ever be the same again. When they gasped for air, he smiled. "It's just not fair…"

Chloe looked at him in confusion. "What in the world…?"

He laughed and she looked at him in shock. She'd never heard him sound quite so carefree before. He looked at the chemise she was wearing and placed one hand on his bare chest. His eyes spoke volumes and she giggled in response. But her eyes met him in seriousness and put her hands on the hem of her shirt, joining his own. She blushed as the shirt slowly came over her head and she wanted to close her eyes in case he was somehow disappointed. But bravery from some unknown source came to the surface and she looked at his face. The awe she saw there made her want to weep with joy. "You're so beautiful," he whispered in a choked voice.

Chloe heaved a sigh of relief and kissed him again. They both shuddered as their bare chests came together for the first time and Chloe wondered briefly if there was any way they were going to be able to take this slow.

But just before he rolled them over, they heard a shriek from entirely too close. "Clark!"

A/N: Life is moving too fast… and the holidays coming up… Argh! But I'm still working on the story… If I'm a little slow in updating, I'm sure ya'll will forgive me eventually:D

iluvsmallville1: I'm so sorry I missed your review last chapter! I did thoroughly enjoy dumping Lana in garbage. I'd do it every story, but that would be redundant… :D

And I am so glad you're still liking my stuff. That makes me happy! ;D

MarkMark261: No typos… again? HOORAY! (And you're right, Author's Notes don't count… ;D) For his age, I was thinking more along the lines that he was put in the shuttle before he turned a year old. As advanced as their technology was, I'm not sure I buy that the trip was nearly instantaneous. I figured a year or two would work… Also, if you've noticed everyone seems to just be turning whatever age at the beginning of the school year (i.e. freshman year – 15, sophomore year – 16, junior year – 17, senior year – 18) so that's where I was going with that.

The patch… Well, you could tell that Chloe was rather suspicious of Jor-El as well. I'm not EXACTLY sure where I'm going to go with that, but you know… same thing with the source of the Transmission. I guess we'll see where Chloe and Clark take me on this adventure… :D

KentCharm: Oh my goodness! I'm so jealous! You're teacher is so lucky! I've always wondered how much of his incredible good looks is due to make-up or what, but really… That man is so GORGEOUS!

I will absolutely cliff if Clark and Lois get together this season. It's not right… I don't care if they are rewriting some of the mythos. It's just not kosher. (GOT THAT, PTB! STOP IT! I'M ALREADY SICK OF DEALING WITH THE LANA RELATIONSHIP! IF YOU THROW IN LOIS… I'LL HOLD MY BREATH 'TIL I PASS OUT! Yeah, like that'll make them see sense…) (Sara pushes back her hair that had turned Einstein on her and straightens up… Her fingers are bruised from tapping so angrily with the keys and she wipes away those angry tears. "It's just not right," she mutters distractedly to herself. She gets up and grabs a cup of egg nog to calm her nerves…)

I've been thinking about working on individual fansites. I have a website, but it's so varied that it would probably be better to work on little individual ones… Hmmm… Now that I have my computer back, maybe that's a possibility… :D