Chloe walked in the hospital room and Edward smiled at her. "I didn't think you'd be awake." She sat down in the chair. "I brought you something." She passed him a small bag and he took it smiling.
"Is this…" He opened it up and inhaled deeply.
"Raspberry Soufflé from Mirabelle." Chloe said. "Which you probably aren't supposed to have so if you get in trouble, we've never met, got it!" She'd gone straight from the airport to the restaurant and then the hospital. She was exhausted but she was putting on a brave face.
"What would I do without out?" Edward asked her.
"Probably pay Raymond to sneak you stuff from Mirabelle." She told him. "So when do you get sprung?"
"Chloe." He set the bag on the side table and smiled up at her, holding out his hand. She grabbed it, still smiling, not fully realizing the seriousness of the situation. "There is something we need to talk about."
"Ok, I know I've been making a lot of changes in Star City but it's all for the best, you'll see." She defended herself.
"I know." He assured her. "I trust you." She smiled again and he sighed. "Do you remember when you first got here?" He chuckled. "Was it only six years ago?"
"Feels like a lifetime." Chloe assured him. "In a good way."
"Do you remember, constantly asking me why I was doing this for Oliver? Why I was taking you in, molding you?"
"Only every day." Chloe laughed. A long time ago, for some reason, the answer to that question had become completely unimportant to her.
"Oliver was doing me a favor, a very dangerous favor." He took a deep breath. "Seven years ago, I was diagnosed with Lupus."
"Lupus?" Chloe said in a whisper.
"It's an autoimmune disease, the body basically attacks itself. It was a rapid onset according to the doctors and there is no real treatment but anything they could think of, I tried. Nothing worked." He took a deep breath. "Oliver is an old family friend and he suggested a very radical, very dangerous, completely unapproved treatment option for me. Something he'd cooked up in one of his labs. It started to work but we both know that it was only to stave off the inevitable. It masked my symptoms but didn't stop the progression of the disease."
"So what does that mean?" Chloe asked.
"Jillian and I, we never had children. I don't have any siblings, I had no living family and I realized that I had no one to carry on my legacy, to run my company." Chloe nodded to show she was following along. "I was determined to train someone to take over when I died."
"Did he barter your health…for me?"
"You know Oliver Chloe." Edward said kindly. "Does that sound like him?"
"No." She shook her head, trying to stop the tears that were falling.
"I considered a few people in the company, some who had been with me since the beginning but…no one was right for the job." Edward said. "During one of my treatments, I explained my problem to Oliver and he suggested you. He needed a way to get you into this lifestyle, and I needed a protégée."
"Buy why did you do it?" Chloe said. "Why did you choose me? If none of the people all ready in the company were good enough…and when we first met, I was a brat."
"Sweetheart. Don't think I went into that first meeting knowing nothing about you. I researched you, thoroughly. I started with your articles at the planet, went back to your time at your college and high school papers. I had someone at the Planet to observe you, see what kind of person you were."
"You spied on me?" She asked smiling slightly.
"Do you remember a girl named Amanda?" Chloe thought back and remembered the bumbling intern girl, the one who always came to Chloe for help, was always screwing up, and always seemed to be around.
"Amanda was a spy?" Chloe laughed. "Well no wonder she was horrible at her job."
"I had a pretty good grasp on your character before we met that night, and I thought, just as Oliver had assured me, that you'd be perfect for the job." He told her.
"Do you…regret it?"
"Not a single second." He assured her. "I made the right choice back then and I couldn't be happier." He looked at her for a minute.
"Do you regret it?"
"No." She shook her head emphatically. "Not even the tiniest bit." She grabbed his hand with both of hers.
"I want you to know…" He coughed a bit. "I've changed my will."
"I don't understand." Chloe said wiping her eyes.
"I've left you everything Chloe. You're no longer playing the part of heiress; you are the real deal…"
"No, I couldn't…you don't…" She shook her head emphatically. "But I'm not even…"
"It was done a long time ago child." He smiled sadly at her. "You get the company, the houses, the money…"
"But I don't want…just stop ok." She pleaded with him.
"This is important. Oliver's treatments have stopped working; I haven't got much time left." He took a deep breath. "My lawyers assure me that it's air tight. Incontestable, not that there is anyone who would."
"Just stop." Chloe got up. "I can't do this…" She grabbed her bag and ran from the room.
"I thought I'd find you here." Ms. Reynolds walked further into the clearing and sat down on the stone bench. "This was, is Mr. Standish's favorite spot."
"He's dying." Chloe said without looking up.
"I know." Chloe turned her head so sharply and angrily Ms. Reynolds had to stop herself from taking a step back.
"Yeah well so did he. For seven years." Chloe said the tears falling again. "And so did Oliver, everyone but me."
"I always told him that course of action was…unwise." Ms. Reynolds admitted. "But he was insistent that you not know until…"
"It was too late." Chloe offered. They sat in silence for a minute. "Why do you care?"
"Why wouldn't I care?" She asked confused.
"Everyone knows you hate me." Chloe said.
"Child." She put a hand on Chloe's shoulder. "I don't hate you. I admit at first I was a little wary of you and your sudden appearance but, over the years you have more than proven yourself."
"He changed his will." Chloe said after a minute of silence.
"I know." Ms. Reynolds said.
"He's giving me everything." Chloe added.
"Yes he is." Ms. Reynolds didn't seem to worry about that too much.
"We aren't related." Chloe informed the woman. "He's not my great Uncle, his mother's sister never…he didn't even know I existed until seven years ago."
If Chloe expected this to make any sort of difference to the old woman she was surprised again. "I suspected." She smiled at Chloe. "He doesn't tell me everything but I'm pretty sharp, even in my old age."
"But don't you see?" Chloe said. "I don't deserve this, any of it."
"Oh but you do." Ms. Reynolds said. "I don't know the circumstances of your arrangement, the cause of it all and I'll happily go to my grave not knowing." She assured Chloe. "This was between Mr. Standish and yourself. If you think for one second that you don't deserve this." She stood up and looked at Chloe. "You may not be related, by blood, or by law, but you are family. You love him so much, and he loves you as if you were his own child. Even beyond all that, beyond what I see when the two of you are together, if Mr. Standish believes you are worthy of this, then there is no doubt in my mind that he's right."
"Chloe smiled up at her. "Thank you." She whispered.
"Will you be coming in soon? I can have Raymond start supper."
"Yeah." Chloe stood up and walked over to Ms. Reynolds and they headed up to the house together. "Ms. Reynolds, just between us girls, Elizabeth and I always had a suspicion…are you in love with him?"
Ms. Reynolds looked at Chloe in shock. "Even if he weren't my boss," she said. "And the most stubborn and particular and disagreeable man I've ever met, I am and have been happily married for more than 40 years."
Chloe looked up in astonishment. "There's a Mr. Reynolds?"
"Some reporter you are." She chuckled.
"Well you never said…" Chloe defended herself.
"I don't often speak of my private life with my employer." She raised an eyebrow.
Chloe smiled. "I'd like to meet him sometime."
"You know, I think he'd like to meet you." Ms. Reynolds said.
Chloe smiled as they continued their walk up to the house wondering if this signaled a change in her relationship with the crotchety old housekeeper. "And please remember whose house you're in young lady. I do not mind you having your gentleman "friend" stay here but you will have separate rooms. I am not running a brothel."
"Yes ma'am." Chloe said. "Wait what are you talking about."
"Hey Tower." Oliver said from the door to the sitting room. He looked exhausted, hadn't shaved in a few days and his clothes were all wrinkled.
"Oliver." She whispered. She was torn up inside, she wanted nothing more than to run and hug him and never let go. She wanted him to hold her and tell her that everything was going to be ok. But more than that she wanted to hit him. She wanted to hurt him so much for the way he'd hurt her. He knew, the whole time he knew about Edward and he didn't give her a chance, not a warning, no inkling of what was going on. "I couldn't tell you." He said stepping forward slowly. "He made me swear, it was a condition."
"I don't care." She said quietly. "You should have…"
"I know." Oliver said to her. "I know what I should have done, what I wanted to do so many times."
"You shouldn't have kept it from me; I had a right to know…"
"You did." Oliver agreed with her. "I know you did. I'm so sorry."
"He's dying Oliver." She started crying again. "He says a month, maybe a little more. I only have a month…"
"I know." He reached her in three strides and pulled her into his arms.
"I can't do this…not a month, I need a year, two…" She sobbed into his shoulder.
"I know." He stroked her hair and nodded at Ms. Reynolds who nodded back and left the room, grabbing the security guard to give them some privacy.
"It's not enough time. I don't have enough time." She said and Oliver didn't know what he could do besides hold her. "I'm so mad at you." She said a few minutes later when she'd pulled herself together. "I'm so mad at you, I want to hit you, and I want…I am so mad at you but I don't have time for that now because I need you."
"I'm here." He promised her. "I'll be here."
"I need you Oliver and I need to not be mad at you." She told him.
"I would really love for you not to be mad at me." He said to her.
"We're going to talk about this, but right now, we're going to have diner, then I'm going back to the hospital to talk to his doctors and then…" She looked up at him. "I have to try Oliver."
"You know it won't work." He said quietly to her, not wanting her to get her hopes up. "In all our tests…"
"All our tests didn't involve people. It was all monkeys or other animals. I have to try…how can I not try." She asked.
"You can't heal diseases Chloe." He reminded her. "We've tried, you've tried, and your power doesn't work that way."
"We'll see about that." She said. "I need you with me on this, because if it works, you know what's gonna happen."
"Chloe…" He stopped at the look on her face. "I just don't want you to get your hopes up, but whatever you think you have to do, I'll be there with you."
"Thank you." Chloe grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze.
"Oliver Queen is the Green Arrow." Chloe said from the doorway of Edwards's bedroom. She'd been avoiding him since he got back from the hospital, requesting to "die like a man in my own house" which Chloe didn't take kindly too but agreed none the less. She wasn't sure how to approach him, how to breach the gap between "I'm mad at you" and "Your dying so I need to not be mad at you". She decided that confession was probably good for the soul, if all those catholic priests were to be believed.
"I'm sorry." He looked up at her confused.
"The Green Arrow." Chloe walked in the room and sat down in the chair beside the bed. "The guy who runs around Star City in green leather with a bow and arrow."
"I know about…Oliver Queen?" Edward said confused.
"Do you remember all the times I asked why you were doing this for Oliver and you would ask me why I was?" Chloe asked him.
"Because he's the Green Arrow?" Edward said still confused.
"Let me start at the beginning." Chloe sighed. "You researched the Torch, my high school paper, so you're probably familiar with Smallville, how it's not…a normal small town."
"Your meteors." Edward sat up a little straighter in the bed. "But could they really…"
"When I was in high school I met so many fantastically powerful people. There was a girl who could control bees, a guy who could suck all of the warmth from your body with a kiss, so many others who had gotten some special power from the meteor rocks that landed in Smallville during the meteor shower." Chloe took a deep breath. "A friend of mine from back home has these powers too, not because of the rocks, but because he came to earth with the rocks."
"An alien?" Edward asked.
"I know how it sounds." Chloe chuckled. "I didn't really believe it at first either and I'm the most open minded person ever. But it's true, on his planet he would have been as normal as normal gets but here, on earth, our sun gives him powers. He can run faster than a train, see through walls; create fire with his eyes, and he's basically indestructible. Bullets, knives, buses, fire, nothing hurts him. We worked together to stop a lot of the crazed meteor infected people for longer than I can remember."
"You did this?" Edward smiled slightly at her.
"Then one day, Oliver Queen comes to town. A few days later, this Green Arrow shows up. He doesn't have special powers, just a desire for Justice and extraordinary skill with a bow and arrow." Chloe smiled. "It didn't take me long to put two and two together and figure out who he really was, which was a total shock for him. But he didn't worry; I was good at keeping secrets. The thing is, Oliver formed this team. People with powers, one can run faster than the alien friend I was telling you about, never lets him live that down." She chuckled thinking of Bart constantly reminding Clark that he's faster. "One of them is incredible if you get him in water, can swim fast, doesn't need to breath, super strength, and recently has started to be able to communicate with fish. Then there's another, normal guy, going to school, football scholarship, beautiful girlfriend. Until one day he gets in a car accident and wakes up in a laboratory, no longer a normal guy, now he's half man, half computer."
"This is extraordinary." Edward said hanging on her every word.
"Oliver formed this team to stop Lex Luther."
"Lex?" Edward said confused.
"Lex was in Smallville when the weird started hitting the fan. Only he became obsessed with it, he wanted to harness the powers, control them, use them for…well he didn't want to start a superhero crime fighting team." She explained. "He's the one who created Cyborg, the half man, half computer I was telling you about. He had a project that he was working on. 33.1, it was set up to capture and experiment on the meteor infected. Now I'm the first one to lay the smack down on them when they start using their powers to hurt people, but most of these people, they were just normal, some didn't even know they were infected. Lex did, he had a guy who could tell when someone had these powers, it was his power, he could look at you and see if you were infected. He didn't know that when he told Lex they were kidnapped and tested, he thought Lex was trying to help them, to cure them. But he wasn't. He was holding them in labs, like animals, running medical tests, sometimes going as far as to kill them and Oliver was determined to stop him."
"Dear God." Edward said.
"I helped him." Chloe said. "The 33.1 that was in Smallville, Oliver and team went in there and cleaned the place up, sent a message to Lex that he couldn't do what he was doing anymore, that Oliver wouldn't let him. We blew up the facility."
"We?" Edward said.
"Well I mainly stayed behind at headquarters and guided them." Chloe blushed. "That's what I do." She looked up at him. "Lex has 33.1 facilities all over the world. Oliver finds them, his team goes in, I make sure they come out. We'd been working together on and off for a while, but that wasn't enough for Oliver." Chloe looked at him. "Lex wasn't the only one interested in the meteors anymore, more and more people are figuring out what they can do, what they can make people do, and Lex can build facilities faster than we can shut them down. He wanted me on full time, monitoring Lex, watching him and others like him. Finding the missions and guiding the missions. But we couldn't do that six years ago. It would require Chloe Sullivan, junior reporter to spend quite a bit of time with Oliver Queen billionaire mogul. No one was gonna believe that, especially Lex, without getting suspicious."
"Yes, your right." Edward said, realizing where this story would go.
"So he needed to re-make me, turn me into someone that could spend a lot of time with Oliver Queen, no questions asked and that's where you came in. I've been working for Oliver this whole time, finding 33.1 labs and shutting them down, trying to keep one step ahead of Lex."
"You're doing this for Oliver, to be a secret crime fighter?" Edward smiled.
"That makes it sound so…comic book." Chloe laughed and Edward raised an eyebrow at him.
"Oliver is helping me too." Chloe said, getting to the next part of the story. "The guy I told you about, the one who could see people with powers, well he saw me. In the back of my mind I guess I figured, as much as I was around the stuff, there was a good chance, one day I'd become infected."
"You have powers?" Edward asked.
"Yeah. Oliver's been helping me with them, helping me control them, figure out what I can do with them, make sure they don't make me crazy or kill me or anything." She chuckled.
"What…" Edward let it hang in the air.
Chloe looked at him and grabbed his hand. She flipped it over and removed the bandage covering the hole where the doctors had taken his blood. She looked up at him then put her hand over the wound and it started to glow. Then there was no more hole, there was no more bruise, there was nothing there. "How did you…" He looked from his arm to Chloe and then back again.
"I can heal things." Chloe said to him. "Well sort of, I don't really heal them so much as I take them from you." She rolled up her sleeve and Edward saw the same bruise he'd had minutes ago, the same puncture wound."
"That's incredible." He reached out to touch it and Chloe flinched a little. "Does it…"
"Yeah." She smiled. "It hurts." She rolled her sleeve back down.
"Could you…not that I want you to have this…but could you…" He struggled to ask her the question.
"No." Chloe shook her head sadly. "It doesn't work on diseases, only wounds for some reason, cuts, scrapes, gun shots, stabbings, and broken bones. I've tried, for the past couple of days, working up the courage to tell you, I've been in here trying while you slept but…"
"I wouldn't want you to Chloe." He assured her. "Not if it means you would end up with this, die from this."
"But I wouldn't." Chloe said to him sadly. "Well I would but, for some reason, if I heal someone, someone whose wound is fatal, and I die from it, I don't exactly stay that way." She explained. "A long time ago, my cousin Lois was stabbed, and she died, and I healed her and I died, but a few hours later, I was back. And a few times since then, but I've always come back. I think because it's not my death, it's not my wound, it doesn't seem to stick…"
"You come back from the dead?" Edward said astonished.
"Well I don't do it for parlor tricks. I don't whip it out at parties but I've been known to, occasionally." She tried to joke with him.
"But you can't…" He trailed off.
"I can't." She said, her sadness returning in a tidal wave. "I don't understand the use of this stupid power if I can't even…I would give anything to be able to…"
"You tried." Edward grabbed her hands to silence her. "It's enough that you want to."
"No it's not." Chloe said to him. "It's really not."
"It is for me." Edward said. "And you know." He thought for a second. "You're doing a good thing. You're saving people, helping them, you're a hero, and if something I did…if giving you money and a job and a name somehow helped you do that well then I can feel like I died a hero." Chloe started crying again. "It's great what you're doing, what you can do, it's amazing, but I should have known really. I should have known how amazing you really were. I am so proud of you." Chloe was full out crying now. "So proud." She laid her head on his shoulder and cried some more as he smiled and stroked her hair.
Chloe once again voice the problem she'd been having. "There's not enough time." She said. "There's so much more we need to do, to say, I need a more time."
"No." Edward looked down at her. "We don't need more time. We just need one perfect day." He assured her. It took her a minute to calm down but she did, pulling away from him and turning her back so that she could compose herself. "While we're being so honest with each other, I have another confession to make." He smiled at her as she made a show of bracing herself for the news. "I am the reason you were fired from the Daily Planet."
"Come again?" Chloe said confused.
"I called Grant Gabriel, he worked on one of my papers before he got the Editor position. I convinced him that it would be best to let you go."
"You told Grant to fire me?" Chloe said smiling slightly.
"I was getting impatient." Edward defended himself. "I wanted to get this show on the road and Oliver said he had to find the right time to approach you. So I made the right time."
"Did you flood my apartment too?" Edward looked at her confused. "Never mind."
"Are you upset with me?" He asked her.
"No, of course not." Chloe said. "Like I told you the other day, I don't regret anything, but I am going to kick Oliver's ass. He acted all surprised when I was fired."
"He was." Edward assured her. "I didn't inform him of that little plan." Chloe smiled. "So tell me about this Green Arrow." He smiled at her. "And this alien friend of yours I want to be the guy with the best stories when I get to heaven." Chloe laughed and sat in the chair.
"Let's see." She thought for a second. "Let me tell you a story about my prom." She smiled.
A few hours later Chloe and Edward were laughing as Chloe regaled him with tales of Smallville. "Thought I'd find you in here."
"Hey." Chloe smiled up at Oliver and he was pleased to see she looked happier than she had in days.
"Ms. Reynolds sent me to fetch you for dinner." He walked further into the room.
"I'll be back later." Chloe assured Edward as she leaned over to kiss his cheek.
"Can I have a word with Oliver?" Edward asked and Chloe looked between the two men and then nodded leaving the room.
"What can I do for you?" Oliver asked walking further in the room.
"It's about Chloe." He said motioning for Oliver to sit down. "First of all, I want to thank you."
"Me?" Oliver asked confused. "For what?"
"For bringing her to me. For bringing her into my life. She's like the daughter that I never had, I'm so proud of her in ways that I can't even…and I have you to thank for that." Oliver wasn't sure what to say, as noble as this made him sound, that was not his intention in anyway. "I'm sure you consider us even, Chloe for the treatment but we're not, if anything I owe you even more now."
"You really don't." Oliver tried to tell him.
"And now I'm going to ask for another favor, one that I won't ever be able to pay back." Edward said.
"Name it." Oliver didn't even hesitate.
"Look after her." He pleaded with Oliver. "Make sure she's happy, make sure she's safe, make sure her life is extraordinary. I realize now that's all I want, more than a legacy, more than an heir, I want her to be so happy."
"I will do everything in my power to…" Oliver had to cut himself off because he was getting choked up. "You don't even have to ask."
"I know." Edward said. "That's why I'm trusting you with her. Because I know even if I had never asked you to do this, you would have anyway. Chloe is such a special girl." Oliver nodded. "And now, knowing about your…extra circular activities." Oliver raised his eyebrows as Edward smiled. "Oh she told me everything, which only makes me see how right I was to think you're the perfect one to protect her."
"I promise." Oliver assured him.
"I know your relationship is…not what the press leads the world to believe, not what you two lead the world to believe, but I believe…" Edward seemed to be choosing his words perfectly. "When I met Jillian, she was my greatest joy, the way that she looked at me; the way we would lose ourselves in each other was magical. When I see you and Chloe, I see Jillian and myself."
"No Chloe and I are just, she's my best friend." Oliver admitted.
"As Jillian was mine." Edward smiled at him. "You may not see it now, but you will. The two of you will do great things together, fantastic things and I'm not just talking about you're little team. I just ask that when you love her, love her greatly."
"And if she doesn't love me?" Oliver asked, surprised at his own question.
"Now do you really think that's going to be a problem?" Edward smiled at him. "Because I don't."
"I promise." Oliver said laying his hand on Edward's and smiling.
"Now, get to diner, you should never leave a beautiful girl waiting."
Oliver smiled and got up and walked out of the room nodding at Edward one last time before heading to the kitchen.
Edward watched the two of them for the next week it seemed it was all he could do. His mobility was limited but Chloe and Oliver had no problem hanging out in his room, or bringing him into whatever room they were occupying. He just wanted to be around family. He stood in the doorway of the sun room and just observed the two of them. "Wayne Industries is trying to buy Consolidated International." Oliver said lazily as he flipped the page in his paper and returned his arm to drape over Chloe's stomach. They were on the love seat in the sun room, Oliver sitting there reading the paper and Chloe, lying in his lap as she read her book, just a lazy Sunday. "That's Spencer's company isn't it? Bruce can't be that stupid, Spencer would never sell."
"He's not trying to buy it." Chloe flipped a page in her book. "I talked to him a few weeks ago. Spencer's trying to prove to his father that his company is more than just a hobby. You know Ryan, if it isn't oil, it's not worth it, and he's trying to get Spencer to quite playing around and come back to his company. Bruce is just doing him a favor, giving him a ridiculous offer so Spencer can turn it down."
"And so Ryan see's that it's the real deal." Oliver said understanding. "That's awfully sweet of Bruce."
"He's a nice guy." Chloe said turning another page. "Plus it's not actually costing him money so…"
"Abby called." Oliver looked down as if he'd just remembered. "She wanted to see if we were going to Aspen this year."
"Is she bringing Antonio?" Chloe said his name with such venom that Oliver had to shake his head.
"Possibly, we didn't really discuss it." He told her.
"If he's going I'd rather stay at home."
"What have you got against this guy?" Oliver laughed. "He's royalty for Christ sake."
"But he's so annoying." Chloe turned slightly to look at Oliver. "His accent's fake you know. He went to School in England and America and he lost his accent a long time ago, he's faking an accent from his own country."
"Ok." Oliver laughed. "That's a little annoying."
"And he talks about himself in the third person." Chloe added going back to her book. "Antonio is hungry, we will eat now. Antonio is tired of this, we will leave."
"I get it." Oliver said. "I'll ask her whose going and if she mentions Antonio I'll say we just want a quiet time at home this year."
"Thanks." Chloe snuggled deeper into his lap.
"Sir." One of the guards walked up to Edward. "You shouldn't be out of bed."
Chloe looked at the door and immediately jumped up. "Edward, what are you doing?"
"I wanted to sit in the sun room." He glared at all of them. "It's a nice day out."
"Here." Oliver jumped up and grabbed his arm, helping guide him to a chair.
"Can I get you something tea?" Chloe asked anxiously.
"No, dear, I just want to sit her for a while, in the sunlight." Edward smiled at her.
"Ok, but if you get tired, or if you start to feel bad, let me know and we'll get you back to your room." She hovered over him anxiously.
"I'll be sure to do that." He waved his hands and shoed her away. She looked at him again, making sure he was ok and then resumed her seat next to Oliver. He picked up his paper and she picked up her book but she didn't move back to her position in his lap, the spell had been broken; there was another person in the room.
Oliver seemed to realize this just as Chloe did and they smiled at each other before returning to their respective reading materials. Edward sighed and turned his attention out the window. They all spent the afternoon lounging in the sun room, Edward occasionally making comments on the scenery, Oliver spitting out some tidbit from the paper, occasionally abandoning it all together to read over her shoulder. "You read fast." He complained once and Chloe looked up at him smiling.
"You weren't finished?" She asked. "You want me to go back?"
"No." He shook his head. "Just let me read it when you're done."
"Sure." Chloe smiled and Oliver folded his paper and stood up.
"I've got a few calls to make." He smiled down at her and leaned over, kissing her on the cheek. She tilted her head to the side expecting it and smiled when he walked away. Chloe turned to see Edward smirking at her.
"What?" Chloe asked closing her book and moving over to where her Uncle was sitting.
"Nothing." He shook his head.
Chloe seemed to realize then what had happened, Oliver leaning over to kiss her. "That was just…habit."
"Right." Edward smiled.
"It was." Chloe glared at him.
"I didn't say anything." He raised his hands and shrugged.
"You were thinking it." Chloe said to him.
"I wasn't thinking anything." Edward said. "Maybe you were."
"We're just friends." Chloe said crossing her arms over her chest.
"You know, I could be mean." Edward said. "I could tell the world that the only thing I want before I die is to see my niece married."
"You wouldn't." Chloe said narrowing her eyes.
"I've thought about it." He admitted. "You could do worse than Oliver Queen."
"True." She told him. "But he could do better than me." She pointed out.
"Don't be so sure about that." Edward said looking over as the sun started to set. "I'm going to miss so much you know." He turned to Chloe. "Your wedding, whether it's to Oliver or not, your kids."
"Kids?" Chloe coughed. "You're jumping the gun there a little aren't you?"
"I'm allowed." He said. "I have to imagine your future because I won't be there to see it."
Chloe felt tears stinging at the edge of her eyes and just nodded. "You'll be there." Chloe assured him. "You'll always be there, you know that right?"
He smiled sadly at her and nodded. "I think I'm ready to go back to bed."
"I'll go get someone." Chloe stood up whipping his eyes.
"I got down here myself; I'll get back up myself." Edward brushed her off.
"You are so stubborn; for once will you let someone help you?" She snapped at him.
"I will when you do." He smiled at her and raised himself out of the seat and walked toward the stairs. The guard at the door rushed forward and Chloe held up her hand.
"He wants to do it himself. It'll serve him right if he falls on his ass." She glared one last time at Edward and then walked out of the sun room and toward the back steps.
Oliver had to go, back to Star City, back to work and Chloe was sad but understanding. She preferred to stay in England, spend as much time with Edward as she possibly could, they spent all day together, on good days talking in the sun room, on bad days hanging out in his room, but they were always together, inseparable Ms. Reynolds had said. But Chloe wasn't expecting that to include 3:00 in the morning. Which is when she found him one night on the landing of the stairs. "What are you doing up?" Chloe asked walking back up the steps coffee can in hand.
"I can't sleep for more than a few hours now a days." Edward admitted. "What about you?"
"Business." Chloe said shaking the coffee cup. "For Oliver, I gotta be online in fifteen minutes."
"Secret business?" Edward smiled at her.
"33.1 lab in Guatemala." Chloe said smiling so relieved to be able to tell someone the straight up truth for once.
"Could I…" He looked at her then turned away then turned back. "Could I watch?"
Chloe smiled bigger. "You want to?" He nodded. "Sure." She nodded for him to follow her to her office and set him a chair up next to hers and then started a pot of coffee. She set up her computer while she waited for the coffee to finish then poured a cup and sat down. She took a deep breath, looked over at Edward and smiled before putting in her earpiece.
Edward looked at the multiple monitors she had set up. There was a satellite image on one, another held a blueprint of a building and the third was just a black screen. "Watchtower on line, we ready?"
"Good to go." Green's Arrow's voice said over the speakers and Edward looked more intently at the screen. "Green Arrow in position."
"Aquaman in position." Another voice said.
"Cyborg in position."
"Impulse in position."
"Ok, you've got four guards on the south entrance Arrow." Chloe typed rapidly on her keyboard. "Another two in the east Cyborg. Impulse and Aquaman you are free and clear."
"Head out." Green Arrow said.
Chloe pushed a button on her headset. She looked over at the satellite image and pointed. "That's Oliver." Chloe said to Edward. "Aquaman, Cyborg, and Impulse." She pointed out the others. Edward just nodded. They could hear what sounded like a fight over the speakers and Edward saw that Chloe was holding her breath. Green Arrows red form moved past the four now still red forms.
"Clear." Green Arrow said and Chloe exhaled. "Right, you're good for now. Go thirty more yards and you'll come to a dead end, take a right and the first door on your left is the maintenance room."
"Got it." Green Arrow said.
"Impulse." Chloe turned her attention to another red form on the screen. "I need you to follow the corridor you're in, there are three lefts and file storage should be right there at the end."
"On it." Impulse said and Edward watched as the red form Chloe had pointed out to him as impulse seemed to drag across the screen as a blur then it was solitary again. "What can I get for you today Watchtower, I've got a lovely assortment of medical files, tons of x-rays."
"Leave those and let them burn, you know what I need, paperwork, payroll, invoices, shipping records."
"No problem, consider it done." Impulse said and Chloe turned her attention to another dot on the screen.
"Cyborg." She said and Edward changed his attention to the Cyborg form. "You are…" She smiled. "In the mainframe all ready."
"Yeah, while you're busying chatting with Impulse, I did what I needed to do." He smiled. "Sending now."
Chloe turned to the black screen and typed something in and suddenly lines of information started scrolling down the screen rapidly. "Don't forget…"
"To wipe the system?" Cyborg chuckled. "This ain't my first Rodeo."
"Sorry." Chloe said sipping her coffee.
"I've got a situation." Aquaman said. Chloe turned her attention to the satellite image.
"What's going on?" Chloe zoomed the image in on Aquaman's position.
"I've got people here." He said.
"What?" Chloe typed something on the keyboard. "There's no heat signatures in that part of the building besides you."
"Well…they're frozen." Aquaman said.
"Repeat that?" Chloe stopped typing and tilted her head.
"There are these…tube things with people inside, I think they're frozen." Aquaman said.
"How many?" Chloe asked.
"Four."
"Hang tight." Chloe switched back into Watchtower mode. "Green Arrow this is Watchtower we've got a situation."
"What?"
"Aquaman's got frozen test subjects in the West Corridor." Chloe said.
"I'm on my way." Green Arrow said.
"No." Chloe typed something else and a new screen popped up. "I'm gonna send Cyborg his way, I need you to time delay the detonators."
"Copy that." Green Arrow said. "Will five minutes do it?"
Chloe was looking at the schematics for the cryo tubes from the information Cyborg sent her. "Better make it fifteen. We've got to delicately disable the system or they'll die." Chloe said. "Cyborg you done?" She asked.
"Just finished." He said. "Heading to exit."
"I need you to detour to Aquaman's position; we've got some frozen test subjects we need to evacuate." Chloe said.
"I'm on it." Cyborg said.
"Impulse." Chloe called out.
"All done Watchtower." He said.
"I need you to go back and get some medical records for me." Chloe said.
"Sure, give me names." Impulse said.
"Aquaman, you have any names or file numbers to go with the subjects?"
"Let me check." He said. "Yeah ready?"
"Go." Chloe nodded and Aquaman rattled of four numbers to her which she repeated to Impulse.
"Got em," Impulse said.
"Cyborg, can you send me visual of the room. I'm gonna talk you through closing down the tubes."
"Online in three, two, one…there."
Edward looked at the new screen that popped up, streaming video from the lab and his breath caught in his throat. It looked like something out of a horror movie, there were four tubes with people inside, all frozen, they looked dead. He could tell Chloe was having the same reaction as he was but she pushed through it and got back on task.
"Ok." She turned to the schematics she had up on the other monitor. "Aquaman, I need you to monitor their vitals while we do this."
"No problem." Aquaman said.
"Cyborg." Chloe cricked her neck settling in to get to work. "I need you to access the system and slowly raise the temperature, not to fast or they'll crash."
"I'll be gentle." He said walking to a computer on the other side of the room.
"When they get to 80 you can take them out safely." She said.
"Check." Cyborg was typing rapidly on the computer as Aquaman stood stoically in the background.
"Vitals holding steady." He said watching the monitors. "We're at 70 and climbing."
"Good job." Chloe sighed in relief. "Make sure to get them out of the blast zone."
"Will do." Cyborg said walking over to the tubes. "And 80. Let's go." Aquaman and Cyborg opened the tubes and carried the people out.
"Arrow." Chloe said. "I need you and Impulse with Aquaman and Cyborg. You've got to get the subjects out."
"We're on our way." Green Arrow said.
Chloe watched their progress through the lab on the satellite image and finally relaxed when they'd made it far enough away from the building.
"All out." Green Arrow said. "We'll take the subjects back to my lab."
"Impulse has the medical records your good to go."
"Quick thinking Watchtower."
Chloe looked at the clock on her computer and turned to Edward. "This is pretty cool." She zoomed out on the satellite image so the whole lab was in view and smiled. "Five, four, three, two, one." When she hit one an explosion rocked the building followed by another, then another.
"One more down, God knows how many to go." Green Arrow said. "Signing off, get some sleep Watchtower."
"You too." Chloe said before taking the ear piece out of her ear.
Edward was still watching the satellite as the compound burned to the ground. "That was." He looked up at Chloe, a loss for something to say.
"My job." She shrugged at him as she went back to the computer.
"What are you doing now?" He asked interested.
"I'm checking for any additional records on those numbers Aquaman gave me. The medical records should help Oliver stabilize them but I want to know what Lex was doing with them."
"You can find that out?"
"Hopefully, that's what they pay me the big bucks for." She smiled. "So what do you think?"
"I think your…amazing." He said to her. "Absolutely amazing."
She blushed. "You should try and get some sleep. I might be at this a while."
"Ok." Edward kissed her cheek. "I'll see you…well later."
"Night." Chloe said not looking up from the computer screen.
Chloe felt invigorated the next day, having Edward know about what she did, watch her do her Watchtower thing, just seemed right to her. She practically skipped down the stairs to the kitchen area and leaned against the counter as she batted her eyelashes up at Raymond. "Oh no." He set his knife down and stopped chopping the vegetables in front of him. "This is serious this face, you want something big."
"Not too big." Chloe assured him. "I have a date today. Just a picnic, for two."
"Oliver coming back today?" Raymond asked.
"No." Chloe shook her head. "I'm gonna take Edward down to the clearing, it's a beautiful day and we're going to have a picnic."
Raymond smiled at her. "Sure what can I do for you?"
"How about traditional picnic fare." She grabbed a strawberry and bit into it. "Fried chicken, Potato salad, the usual stuff. Oh and there are some special ingredients I'm gonna need." Chloe grabbed a pad by the fridge and started to write something down. She handed it over to Raymond who looked at it then nodded.
"You are the best." Chloe said. "One of these days I'm gonna convince you to quit this job and marry me." She kissed him on the cheek.
"Yeah yeah." Raymond smiled. "You're such a tease."
Chloe passed Ms. Reynolds on her way to get ready and smiled at the woman. "Good morning." She said. "Is Edward up yet?"
"Yes." Ms. Reynolds looked at her strangely. "He's requested to be taken to the sun room."
"Oh Good." Chloe smiled. "Would you tell him I'll be down in about an hour?" Ms. Reynolds just nodded as Chloe practically danced up the steps.
She found Edward in the sun room an hour later and walked over to him. "What do you have planned for the day?"
"Oh I'm pretty busy." He said to her. "I thought I'd go skydiving, then maybe deep sea fishing, possibly a hike up Mount Kilimanjaro.
"Nah." Chloe laughed. Everyday Edward listed things that most people say they want to do before they die, but he had no desire to do any of those things. "I have something much more exciting planned." Chloe held out her hand and pulled him up. "If you will be so kind as to accompany me?"
"I would be honored." He let her pull him up and they walked toward the back deck. Raymond intercepted them with a hand on Chloe's arm.
"Everything's ready." He said to her.
"Great." She kissed his cheek and then slipped her arm in Edwards and led him down the garden to the clearing. They had set up a blanket and a few cushions for her and Edward and he smiled.
"A picnic?" He looked at Chloe. "This is fantastic." She helped him sit down on one of the cushions and then opened the cooler taking the food out. "Jillian used to do this." He told Chloe.
"Really?" Chloe smiled.
"Every now and then she'd just wake up and decide to have a picnic." Edward said and started to fix his plate.
"Just a second." Chloe said pulling her special ingredients out. "I've got a surprise."
She set her things up on the bench to use as a table top and started mixing things in a glass. "Is that what I think it is?" Edward smiled at her.
"An Egg Cream." Chloe nodded. "Remember you told me the story about how you had one once as a kid in New York and then forced your chef to learn how to make it."
"I used to have one every day." Edward said. "How did you learn it?"
"Internet." Chloe said stirring the ingredients very quickly.
"Amazing invention." Edward said. They ate their food and drank their egg creams and then just laid on the blanket and stared at the sky telling each other stories for hours.
"So Oliver is completely naked." Edward said. "Running through the party, weaving in and out of people and Jillian and his mom were chasing him, trying to catch him. Everyone was just minding their business as if it happened all the time."
"From what I gathered, I did happen all the time." Chloe said laughing. This was the third story Edward had involving a naked Oliver.
"So Jillian and his mom have him cornered. They're circling around him and he's eyeing them like he's planning on making a break for it. Meanwhile his dad's just standing at the bar laughing and his mom glares at him as says, "I could use some help here." His dad rolls his yes and says, "He's only five." But Oliver's mom glares and he turns to Oliver and says, "Hey sport, you wanna put some clothes on?" And Oliver puts his hands on his hips and sighs. "Dad, I'm the Lone Ranger." And his dad says, "I'm pretty sure the Lone Ranger wore clothes." So Oliver rolls his eyes and stomps back into the house."
Chloe laughed even harder. "You know I'm so using that story against him." Chloe smiled as her phone rang and she looked at the screen. "Speak of the devil."
"You get it." Edward said. "I'll start cleaning up."
Chloe stood up and answered the phone. "Hey you." She said. "Edward was just telling me a very interesting story about you." Chloe said. "Something about running through his garden party naked, claiming to be the Lone Ranger."
"That man is full of lies." Oliver said.
"Really?" Chloe smiled.
"Can't believe a word he says." Oliver told her.
"Is that so?" Chloe laughed.
"Yeah and if he tries to tell you something about getting caught in the garden shed with Michelle Baker you just plug your ears and walk away."
"I'm so gonna ask him about that now." Chloe said.
"Of course you are, I just walk into these things don't I?"
"You really do."
"Ok lets stop talking about naked Oliver." He told her.
"Do we have to?" Chloe pouted.
"I called for a reason." Oliver said. "I wanted to know if you got anything off the stuff from last night."
"Chloe?" Edward called out to her.
She held up a finger, asking for a minute. "I didn't get much done, haven't really gotten that into it."
"Chloe." Edward called to her.
"Just a minute." Chloe said. "I'll get on it as soon as I can…" She stopped when she heard a glass break. She turned around and saw Edward fall to the ground, the other glass in his hand falling on the bench and shattering. "Edward?" Chloe said running over to him.
"Chloe?" Oliver screamed.
She reached Edward finally, everything felt like it was in slow motion. She grabbed his head and saw his eyes flutter as his hand reached out for her. She felt for a pulse, it was slowing down. "Stay with me." She said
"One perfect day." Edward told her as his eyes closed.
"No." Chloe started crying as she hung up on Oliver and dialed emergency services.
It took an hour for the paramedics to get there and in that time Chloe hadn't moved. No on in the house even knew what was going on so they were surprised when the ambulance showed up. The paramedics were followed to the clearing by Simon and Ms. Reynolds, all who found Chloe kneeling on the ground with Edwards head in her lap, rocking back and forth and crying.
"Ma'am." They knelt by her. "We need you to move." They tried to pull her away and she pulled back, not moving an inch.
"Chloe." Simon said grabbing her gently by the arm and dragging her away. Ms. Reynolds came up behind her and grabbed her shoulders as she stared at the paramedics doing their job. They did CPR for a few minutes and then she saw one look at the other and shake his head.
There was a parade of people in and out of the house that day. The phone wouldn't stop ringing, Chloe's phone wouldn't stop ringing. Edward's doctor explained that his heart probably failed, it wasn't a heart attack exactly so much as his heart just stopped working.
Raymond managed to get Chloe to eat something. Ms. Reynolds tried to get her to sleep but she said she had too much to do. She couldn't seem to settle her mind. She had to call the funeral home and the church. Edward's lawyer had given her a list of things that Edward requested and Chloe was working her ass off to make sure that each one was done to perfection, exactly how Edward would have wanted it.
She was on the phone with the florist, pacing in the entry way when the door opened and Oliver, Lois, and Clark stood in the door. "Chloe." Oliver said looking exhausted.
"Hey." She smiled and put a hand over the phone. "What are you guys doing here?"
"What do you mean what are we doing here?" Lois dropped her bag and walked to Chloe to hug her. "We're here for Edward's funeral, for you."
"You didn't need to come." Chloe said confused. "You didn't even know Edward."
"Chloe." Oliver said confused.
"Hold on." She went back to her phone conversation. "Yes, the white ones, two hundred, I need them here by one o'clock. Thanks that's great." She hung up the phone.
"How are you?" Clark asked.
"I'm fine, really guys, you didn't have to come all this way." Chloe said.
"Of course we did." Lois said. "You were there for me when Grant died. I'm gonna be here for you."
"That's sweet really." Chloe said. "But I'm fine." She turned to the door. "Ryan could you get someone to bring their things to the guest rooms?" He nodded at Chloe and she turned to go to the kitchen. "Look, I'd love to stay and catch up but I've got a ton of things to do so if you guys just want to go into the Sun room, I'll have Raymond bring you some food, I'll be there in a little bit."
"Chloe, you don't have to do all this." Oliver told her.
"Who else is going to do it?" She asked him confused. "I'll send Raymond to see what you guys want to eat, ok? Julia, can you show them to the sun room?"
"I know the way." Oliver said strangely. He led Lois and Clark to the Sun room and stopped in the doorway when he saw Abby, Lily, and Rose sitting there. "Hey." He said. "You guys get banished here too?"
"Three hours ago." Abby said.
"How is she really?" Oliver asked sitting down.
"I don't know." Abby shrugged. "She's been going non stop since we got here."
"She was like this when Gabe died." Lois said. "It's gonna hit her soon and it's gonna hit her hard."
"We'll be here when it does." Oliver assured Lois.
She spent the whole day working on arrangements and very little time with her friends, who tried everything to get her to slow down, to relax. But Chloe had to keep going, she couldn't stop because if she stopped, she'd have to much time to think so she kept herself busy.
The problem arouse the next day at the funeral. There was nothing left to do, nothing left to plan, nothing to keep her busy and she kind of shut down. She didn't say a word at the church, she didn't say a word at the cemetery and she stood on the porch at the house, staring away into nothing.
Chloe stared down the slope of the garden and wanted nothing more than to walk down there and hideaway in the secret garden, the last place she and Edward had been, the last place he'd smiled and laughed. "Chloe." Abby touched her arm and turned around to see a group of people looking at her expectantly, they'd obviously been calling her for a while.
"Yeah." She said softly. "Sorry." She hugged her arms closer to her as she shivered and wondered if she'd ever feel warm again.
"They're running out of canapés." Abby said softly.
"Out?" Chloe looked around confused. "We've only been back for thirty minutes."
"We've been back for two hours." Lily said.
Chloe looked around the yard for the first time and saw all of the people there. "Honey, maybe you should go lie down."
"Who are all these people?" Chloe asked confused as everywhere she looked she saw crowds and crowds of people, all dressed more for a cocktail party than a funeral reception.
"Friends of your Uncles." Rose said confused.
"No, I don't know these people." Chloe said shaking her head as if something was wrong.
"They're here for you, for your uncle." Abby spoke quietly and slow as if Chloe was three.
"No." She said forcefully watching them drinking and chatting, networking. "They're not. They're here to be here." She said disgusted.
Abby, Rose, and Lily looked at Chloe worried. She was staring around the yard like she'd never been there before in her life, she looked confused. "I want them to leave." She said turning to Abby with such conviction they were shocked.
"Lily, go get Oliver." Abby whispered.
"I don't want Oliver." Chloe said louder and some people turned their way. "I want these people out of his house."
Lily looked between Abby and Chloe unsure which one to listen to. Rose nodded her head in the direction Oliver was and Lily nodded walking away. "Chloe you should go lie down." Abby grabbed her arm and tried to steer her up the steps.
"I don't want to lie down." Chloe screamed jerking her arm away from Abby.
"How is she doing?" Bruce asked Oliver stealing a glance at Chloe; she was fighting with Abby about something, staring out at the garden.
"I don't know." Oliver admitted. "She hasn't cried yet." He glanced over at her. "Not once, she just stares vacantly and I just don't know what to do."
"You just have to give her time, she'll get better." Bruce said.
"Did you ever get better?" Oliver raised his eyebrows. Bruce was one of the only people Oliver knew that could understand what Chloe was feeling.
"No." Bruce said after a pause and Oliver sighed.
"Me either."
"I don't' want to lie down." Chloe screamed loudly and Oliver's head snapped up when he heard her voice and he saw Lois trying to catch his attention.
"Excuse me." He said to the group that he was in and he and Bruce followed Lily back to Chloe. "What's going on?"
"I don't know, she seems out of it." Lily said. "She's confused and angry Abby went to tell her that the canapés were running out and she just got really mad and…"
"Ok." Oliver nodded at Lily to thank her and walked over to Chloe. "Chloe, I'll deal with the canapés, why don't you go sit down for a while, take a break."
"I don't care about the freaking canapés Oliver." Chloe screamed at him and now everyone was looking at her. "What I care about is all these people here, pretending that they care that he's gone."
"Chloe." Oliver said shocked. "Everyone here cares about your Uncle."
"I don't know these people Oliver and I find it extremely hard to believe that they knew my Uncle." She snapped at him. "I want them to leave." She said loudly. "Make them leave."
"I can't just." Oliver stopped when Chloe turned away from him and walked over to the table that was holding the canapés, grabbed it and flipped it over sending platters and glasses flying across the yard. She walked to the bar and swept her hand across the top, knocking all of the bottles over the edge to smash on the patio.
"The food is gone." Chloe announced. "The bar is closed. Leave." She glared at them long enough to let everyone know she wasn't kidding and then stormed off in the other direction.
"Chloe." Bruce said stepping in her path.
"You want to move." She said calmly. He looked at her for a second and then nodded moving out of her way.
She stormed into the house and Oliver looked at Abby. "Could you please escort everyone out?"
"Sure." Abby said as Oliver took off after Chloe. He could hear Abby make an announcement. "Everyone, Chloe is understandably upset today; I think it would just be best if she had some time alone. I know she really appreciated all of you coming but for now, if we could just have everyone leave." Abby nodded at the staff and they understood her meaning and began escorting guests through the house and out of the door.
Chloe wasn't in her bedroom so he walked down the hall and sighed in relief when he saw her sitting on the window seat in Edwards's old room. "You've got to stop being mad at him." Oliver said standing in the doorway.
"You really need to leave." Chloe said staring out the window.
"No." Oliver said defiantly. She didn't turn away from the window. "You need to come downstairs."
"Why?" She asked, her voice not filled with venom anymore, just hopeless curiosity.
"Abby's sending everyone home." He took another step into the room, slowly making his way to the window seat. "But she's worried about you. So are Lily and Rose and Bruce."
"I don't care." She said.
"You do." Oliver said. "You need to get over this…anger you have toward him."
"Why do you think I'm mad at him?" She asked and Oliver did catch the emphasis on the word him.
"Who else could you be mad at?" He asked quietly.
She turned slowly to face him, her cheeks splotchy and red, her make-up no doubt ruined, although it was hard to tell behind the sunglasses. "You." She said as if it was obvious.
"Me?" Oliver was taken aback. He dropped his hand from her shoulder. "Why are you mad at me?"
"This is all your fault." Chloe explained exasperated. "I never would have met Edward, much less cared for him if you hadn't had your stupid plan."
"My stupid plan?" Oliver seemed hurt by that.
"Fighting Lex Luther, saving innocents, grow up Oliver." She stood up slowly but steadily. "You and your need for Justice, that's what, brought me here. What good has it done? Lex his building labs faster than we can shut them down, more and more people are joining with him? What good was any of this?"
"Chloe just stop." Oliver said.
"And you knew, you knew when you brought me in he was dying and you let me…"
"I've apologized for that Chloe, so much." He begged her to understand.
"What does that matter? A sorry? It's a word, a useless, stupid word. Are you sorry?" She asked him. "Are you sorry about anything that happened? You're not sorry about who I've become, about how well your plan worked, you're not sorry about that."
"No." Oliver admitted. "I'm not sorry about that."
"I am." She screamed. "I'm sorry I ever agreed to this, I'm sorry I ever met you."
'Don't say that Chloe." Oliver begged her. "What can I do here? How can I help make this better?"
"I want to go back." She deflated again and she wasn't angry anymore, she was hurting and scared. "I want to go back to Smallville. I want to sit at my crappy desk at the Daily Planet and have coffee with my friends and pretend you don't exist." She cried. "Can you do that? Can you give me back my other life?"
"No." He shook his head.
"Then I quit." Chloe said. "I don't want to do this anymore, play these stupid games. I'm done Oliver, no more Watchtower. Then I could just go back and forget about all of this."
"You don't really want that."
"Yes I do." She screamed at him. "I do."
"Why?" He asked desperately.
"Because it wouldn't hurt this much." She grabbed her chest. "I would be sitting at a table at the Talon and I would read about his death in the paper and I would vaguely recognize his name and then I would move on, to another story."
"God Chloe." Oliver said as she stormed out of the room. He followed behind her as she made her way down the stairs, thankfully everyone except her friends were gone. "Chloe stop." He grabbed her arm and turned her around. "How could you say something like that? How could you want that?"
"Because then, it wouldn't hurt like this." She said falling against him. "I can't breathe sometimes it hurts so bad, I feel like I'm drowning and I can't." She started sobbing harder and gasping for breath. "It's all your fault." She said through her tears and he tried to hug her. "No." She hit him. "Don't touch me." She tried to push away, tried to hit his chest again but he was holding onto her wrists and she couldn't go anywhere.
"Chloe, it's gonna be ok." He said pulling her closer.
"No." She said giving into him and collapsing into his hug. "I can't breathe." She sobbed. "It hurts, Oliver, it hurts."
"I know." Oliver said rubbing her back, tears welling up in his eyes because there was nothing he could do to make this hurt go away. He'd felt it before, when his parents died, and he knows she'd felt it before when Gabe died, and he knew that she was right, that she wouldn't be feeling it now if it weren't for him. He hated himself for putting her through this but he knew she didn't mean what she was saying, not all of it anyway.
"Make it stop Oliver." She sobbed into his chest. "I want to breathe again."
"I can't." He said to her sadly. "I would if I could, you have to believe that." He held on tighter, hoping that it was comforting her, that it was helping somehow but he knew it wasn't. She clutched at him, her fingers digging into his shoulders and she held on to him as if her life depended on it.
"Make it stop." She mumbled over and over again until she just didn't have the strength anymore and her legs gave away. Oliver followed her down to the ground, slowly lowering her to the floor without letting go. He just held on and rocked her back and forth as she gathered herself together.
"It's ok." He whispered over and over in her ear. "It's gonna be ok." He said as her breathing slowed. After five or ten minutes it was just the two of them, holding onto each other on the floor.
"Oh my god." Chloe said quietly into his chest and Oliver followed her gaze out to the backyard. "Oh my god."
"It's ok." Oliver assured her.
"It's not ok." She said pulling herself away from him and standing up. "I did that…" She looked between the destroyed yard and Oliver. "I made such a scene."
"People will understand." Oliver assured her.
"And if they don't." Lois said from the corner of the room. "We'll kick their asses."
"Yeah." Rose nodded smiling sadly at Chloe.
"I'm so sorry." Chloe said walking toward them.
"Oh honey you don't' have to apologize." Lois grabbed her into a hug. "You don't have to apologize at all." She rubbed circles on her back and Lily stepped in and threw her arms around both of them, then Rose and Abby stepped in and hugged them all.
"I think I might go lay down for a while." Chloe smiled weakly.
"Probably a good idea." Oliver said taking her arm, only this time she allowed him to lead her up the stairs. She hadn't been in her room in a week. She'd moved into the room next to Edwards when his condition worsened and he could no longer walk around. She wanted to be close, right there in case anything happened.
When she saw her bed she realized how exhausted she was, remembered that she hadn't slept in a days. Oliver led her over to it and helped her sit down. She had just run out of steam somewhere between sobbing on the floor and sitting on the bed that she didn't even have the energy to undress. "You can't sleep in that." Oliver told her and she looked at him blankly. He smiled and walked to the closet coming back in with some sweatpants and a shirt. "Here." He pulled her shoes and pantyhose off and then pulled the dress over her head.
"That's dry clean." She managed to say and he picked it up from the floor and set it back on the hanger.
"Help me just a little." He asked trying to get her arms through the sleeves of the shirt. She somehow managed to do that and help him with the pants. "Just sleep ok." Oliver said lying her down on the bed and pulling the covers over her. "I'll be downstairs if you need anything."
"No." Chloe called out desperately. The strength in her voice startled Oliver and he stopped his walk to the door. "I don't want to be alone." She whispered.
"Ok." Oliver said and stripped his jacket and tie off. "I'll stay." He laid them on the chair beside the bed and sat down she shook her head and patted the bed next to her. He smiled and then climbed in and she wrapped his arms around her and he pulled her close. "I'm here, you can sleep now."
"Thank you." She whispered before passing out. He listened to her breathing even out and the soft rhythm reminded him just how tired he was. It was 2 in the morning in Star City when he finally got through to the house and Ms. Reynolds told him what happened. He left thirty minutes later and hadn't slept since he got there and now it was catching up with him. He closed his eyes, just for a second, he told himself but before he could stop, he was out cold.
Chloe opened her eyes and blinked. The sun was coming in through the window and she shook her head in confusion. It had been late afternoon when she went to bed, but it looked like morning. She checked the clock, it was 6 a.m. She'd slept straight through the night. She sighed, feeling much better than she had the day before, the horrible day before and tried to turn over, only to be held in place by a very strong arm. She looked over her shoulder and smiled at the sight of Oliver's sleeping face, his forehead nuzzled in against her neck. He murmured something and pulled her closer to him. She kissed his forehead and sighed. "Go back to sleep." He said, moving his head slightly to dig further into the pillow.
"Ok." She whispered but she was awake now. She turned to her nightstand to see if there was a book or something she could read lying on it and stopped when she saw a small box. The same box that Oliver always left her charms in. How long had it been sitting there? She couldn't remember the last time she'd been in her bedroom. She slowly reached out and picked it up.
"What is it?" Oliver asked from over her shoulder.
"I don't know." She turned to face him. "Didn't you?"
"No." He shook his head and yawned. "It's not from me."
She looked at Oliver then the box and lifted the lid slowly. Inside was a charm, exactly like the ones that Oliver bought her but this was a mask. She lifted it up to get a better look. "There's a note." Oliver told her and she set the charm on the bedside table and pulled the note out. "A mask for my superhero. I know that this is Oliver's thing, the charms, but I wanted you to have something on there from me. Something that shows you how proud I am of you…" Chloe choked up and put a hand to her mouth. Oliver lifted his arm off of Chloe and took the note from her gently.
"I sat beside you last night and watched as you saved the lives of four people, four people who no one else even knew needed saving. You did it without acknowledgement and refused to accept praise because as you said, it was your job. But it's not your job. It's your choice. You're that person that knows something isn't right and fixes it because it has to be done. I used to be amazed by your business skills but even after a while I just came to expect the best from you, but last night I saw so much more than a reporter, more than a business genius, I saw a hero. I want you to know that I know who you are and what you do, even if no else ever does and I'm so proud to have known you, even if it was only for six far too short years. You're my hero Chloe and one day, I just know, you'll be the world's hero."
Oliver folded up the note, moved on Chloe's behalf. He looked over, expecting her to be crying but she wasn't, and she was just staring at the charm. "I quit yesterday." She said looking over at Oliver.
"You didn't mean it." Oliver argued with her.
"I did." Chloe said running her hands over the silver mask. "I meant every word of it. I thought what we were doing was useless, futile." She sighed and smiled slightly. "I guess I got short sighted, lost the mission."
"What do you mean?" Oliver sat up straighter in the bed and looked at her.
"I was so consumed, so overwhelmed; I had Lex blinders on, wanted nothing more than to just stop him, destroy him." Chloe shook her head. "Which is good, he needs to be stopped. But I was coming to the realization that we just couldn't do it. It was a useless fight, for every lab we destroy he puts up two more. We'd been trailing behind him for six years and I just thought we would have been further along. But it's not about that."
"No." Oliver said. He'd had to come to this realization on his own, and he was glad now that Chloe was finally figuring it out.
"It's about those four people." Chloe said. "The ones we saved from him, the ones no one even knew were in danger. I didn't even bother…I never asked how they were doing, I was obsessed with sorting through the files, finding the next target."
"They're fine." Oliver smiled at her. "Recovering nicely."
"And they'll be fine." Chloe said smiling and shaking her head. "Because of what you guys did."
"What we did." Oliver corrected her.
"They'll have a normal life…well as close to normal as they can get, but it won't be in a lab, it won't be in a tube." She looked at Oliver. "How many more people out there are like them?"
"I don't know." Oliver said. "But we'll find them, and we'll save them, and it may take six more years, or sixteen more, but we'll stop Lex."
Chloe looked over at him sadly. "But I quit yesterday."
Oliver snorted. "You can't quit." He scoffed at her. "I told you, this was the last job you'd ever take and I mean that."