Chapter 3

"You didn't have to come you know." She was staring at her Styrofoam cup intently for the past five minutes. We'd been silent during that time after a full day of endless talking, jeering, and laughing. In the comfort of the dimly lit park across from her dorm, we sat. Chloe and I occupying a bench that over looked the lake atop some old bridge.

"Yeah I did. It's been too long."

Chloe turned the cup in her hands idly. "Stop pretending you're happy to be here."

"Who's pretending? We're you not there when I laughed so hard I almost choked to death?"

She shot me an annoyed look. 'That's not what I mean and you know it.'

"You're scared I'm going to turn into some monster, aren't you?" For the record, I prefer her ignoring me. When she looks at you, I mean really looks at you, her eyes dig in and you just know that you won't be able to hide a thing from her. It's a pretty frightening experience all its own.

"No, of course not." My eyes fell to the stone floor to avoid her gaze.

"Might want to work on that lying ability, Mr. President."

"Yes." I admitted in a quiet voice, because I could still feel her watching me.

"Well, you don't have to worry." Yeah, because thinking about your imminent death doesn't make me worry at all. Nope. "Did Clark tell you about the pact?"

"The weight loss one or the really morbid one?" Diversion is such a fun tactic.

"Door number two." I nodded in response.

"And what do you think?"

"I think it's a terrible idea. I'm saying no and I think Clark should have to."

"Why's that?" Her eyebrows quirked inquisitively. She officially entered reporter mode.

"Be serious. You know the guy better than even me. Do you honestly think he's going to be able to do that to anyone, much less you?"

"Me?" She questioned the discrepancy.

I rolled my eyes at her. "Ignorance. I was so sure you out grew this."

Her bewildered expression only increased. I rose from my seat and stood before her, to speak directly to her.

"I want you to listen to me and actually listen." I waited for her to agree. "Clark is a really selfless guy, but when it comes to dying, the kind you can't actually come back from, I think he's more conservative than we think."

Predictably, Chloe dismissed my implication.

"You don't think he would die for you or his mother? And what about Lana? He turned back time to save her."

"As far as I know they're both still very much alive. Unless that's changed recently."

"Don't you remember what caused that? Clark died and was brought back by his father. He begged to not be revived."

"That's because he didn't want to be responsible for the person's death. But if you recall correctly, the entire town would have been destroyed by that MIT psychopath had he not decided to come back."

"Clark is a hero, not a selective hero. He'd turn the world upside down for any of us." Her arms folded over her chest.

"Look, if either me or Lana were in that sort of situation he would do anything, I'm not saying he wouldn't. But give up his life in exchange for ours? He wouldn't. Clark values everyone's life, but sometimes he's about the greater good."

"Why me then?" Her disbelief showing through her words.

"The greater good." I shrugged. "He believes that you are more valuable to this earth than he is alone. Not to say he thinks you'll be out there on the front lines beating away bad guys with your newspapers …Clark believes that on your own you'd make a difference."

"What, he wouldn't? That doesn't make any sense. When have I ever made a difference? I'm not the one helping people. I'm not the one who was sent to earth to be its savior." I sat by her side again and placed my hand on hers.

"But you have helped people and have saved the world. You've arguably done more than he has."

"No, that doesn't fit." She pulled her hand away from mine. I can't say that didn't hurt. "That's still not right."

I almost shouted back. "Why? Because you can't accept the truth?"

"I only found out his secret, what…two years ago? Clark's been pulling people out of the fire long before we ever became a team."

"Yeah, but even then who was feeding him the information? Clark's got reporter chops, but like yours? No way."

"He's been able to stand on his own loads of times. Plus, he could always find a new Pulitzer wannabe who—."

"—who he would have to befriend for years and years before he could trust them with his secret. Clark's not in the secret telling business. Ask Lana."

"But…" I shook my head at her. She really could be painfully stubborn sometimes.

"You're missing the point. He needs you, the way you need… I don't know, air or water. For him, your death is so unfathomable he can't even process it. His life is so dependent on your existence because of what you stand for to him."

I turned my attention to the lake, watching the smooth ripples in its surface.

"Clark would die for you without a moment's hesitation, even if it doesn't make any sense to you or me. He could move on from Lana's, my, or anyone else's death really. You would be there to heal him and in time he would be himself again. There's still hope of getting back his life when you're there."

"How do you know all this?" Her voice grew soft, becoming less unsure of me.

"Because Clark came to see me a few months ago." She looked as shocked as ever. "I know, it surprised me too. Basically, everything I'm telling you is straight from his mouth."

"Do you remember what he said to you after his phantom mind control experience?"

"Yeah…that I meant a lot to him." Now she was no longer defiant. I could hear her caution.

"He elaborated on that more. I'm sure he didn't mention this to you, but you died in his dream. Shot right in front of him too. He gave up fighting the reality after that. Even the phantom knew that to break through Clark, you had to be removed."

"Why didn't either of you tell me?"

"He didn't want you to worry about him and he made me promise not to tell you." She looked away from me, taking all of this in. Her skepticism still persisted.

"But he did fight. He did. He wouldn't be here if he didn't."

"He only came back because he realized it wasn't real and you were still alive. Otherwise, he was willing to stay there with Lana and trap himself in his own subconscious."

She stared at me for one long moment, unsure. Then suddenly her eyes shined with jubilance, she accepted it.

"So I do mean a lot to him?" Two steps forward, ten back. Her smile came back, though it was restrained just in case I didn't answer in the affirmative.

I smiled my goofiest, toothy smiles. "You mean the world to him."

Here I was laying the groundwork. The first pieces to an elaborate puzzle I concocted that night when I decided to return. I wasn't here to stop the dream from coming true or to somehow fix Chloe. I know who I am and what I'm capable of doing. I'm just a mortal named Pete Ross and I'm not going to be able to turn the world on its axis anytime soon. I can not control destiny.

But I can do my part to influence it.

I was here on a mission.

I was here to save Clark Kent.