Chapter 7: Hungry? Midnight…snack anyone?
Lois couldn't sleep and this time it had nothing to do with Chloe's snoring and everything to do with the fact that Clark Kent's naked image was plastered on the back of her eyelids. Randomly, it had initially been her concern for him that had her thoughts revolving around the farm boy. Her brain made a slight and barely noticed segue between thoughts of Jor-El and Clark's subconscious. What started out as an attempt to connect the dots between floating incidents had led her brain on a one way track back to naked Clark.
Resigning herself to mentally eyeballing Smallville it was a few long, very creative minutes before her thoughts actually caught up and spread before her. Sex equals floating Clark, sleep equals floating Clark. Subconscious? Dreaming! Sleeping Clark gives access to subconscious thoughts, subconscious thoughts lead to unintentional hovering above floor or bed or haystack.
'What was he dreaming?'
Lois was wracking her brain trying to think of something that could explain this when she remembered what Clark told her about his heat vision. Thinking about sex started the heat vision it stood to reason that sex could be an activating factor in more than one of his powers. If she just knew what he was dreaming about maybe she could help him get this floating thing under control. Maybe she could turn this floating in to honest to god flying like he claimed to have done a year ago under the influence of Kal-El.
Lois launched out of bed and snatched up her phone. She dialed Smallville's cell phone and prayed she wouldn't accidentally wake up Martha; the woman had enough on her plate she didn't need late night phone calls inquiring about her son's dreams.
Clark picked up after only one ring. She didn't bother with a hello.
'What were you dreaming?'
'Lo?'
'What were you thinking?'
'Mmmm, sleep good?' Clark suggested sarcastically.
Lois rolled her eyes and moved toward her bedroom door.
'Just come over will you?'
'Alright.'
Lois made it to the front door just in time to let a half dressed sleep addled Clark in to the apartment. She held a finger to her lips and pointed toward Chloe asleep on the couch. Clark shot her annoyed look but remained silent until they were safely back in her room.
'I think I figured it out.'
'Figured what out?' Clark asked her.
He crawled on to the bed and rested against the head board. She just watched him until he raised a bemused eyebrow.
'Sex triggered your heat vision, sex triggered your floating so I'm wondering what was going on in your subconscious these past few weeks that have you floating most nights.'
Clark scrubbed a tired hand over his face. It was way too early to be unraveling the mystery of his subconscious. For all he knew he'd been dreaming about his chores. Though come to think of it the last time he'd woken up floating he could have sworn he was having a very weird dream involving Lois and a hammer she was using to beat him over the head.
'The last thing I remember dreaming before floating was about you and a hammer.'
'Kinky,' Lois smirked.
'You were hitting me repeatedly over the head with it.'
'Realistic,' Lois mused thoughtfully. 'I like it.'
'Realistic?'
Lois shrugged. 'Lately I've been thinking up amusing ways to not hurt you.'
'You thought about hitting me over the head with a hammer?'
Lois shook her head with a smile.
'No, I thought about hitting you over the head with a sledge hammer.'
'Be still my heart.'
'Oh we are so trying it tomorrow.'
'Whatever, Lo, was there a reason you got me over here at two in the morning?'
Lois frowned, she was sure there had been a good reason at the time to not simply tell him over the phone. Ah, now she remembered. Experimentation!
'Lay back, Smallville, and let's see about that floating.'
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Chloe crawled off the couch the next morning and made a very wobbly path to the kitchen for coffee. Part of the way there she tripped over something but to tired to figure out what it was she merely kicked it out of her way and made for the coffee. Fifteen minutes later, with fresh coffee in her system and a decent study of the photos on the fridge under her belt she decided to find the object that had nearly caused her to fall face first to the floor. She gazed in the direction she assumed it to have gone and promptly choked on her coffee.
It was a boot. A nice big work boot like the ones Clark was always wearing. After she'd got her coffee safely down the right pipe she remembered the conversation she'd overheard the night before. Lois asked him to stay but she'd heard him decline. Sudden sounds of movement had her frozen in place. Unsure if she wanted to feign sleep and eavesdrop again or remain where she was and demand answers. In the end the choice was made for her, her indecision having cost her the time to do anything.
It was Clark who emerged from Lois' room pulling the door closed behind him. Chloe chose to raise an eyebrow and watch him with amusement. To her annoyance Clark didn't even react, he walked over to her in the kitchen rubbing a hand through his hair dressed in t-shirt and jeans.
'Morning,' he greeted, going straight for the fridge and the orange juice it contained.
Chloe stared at him for a moment dumbstruck; he wasn't even going to explain what he was doing coming out of Lois' bedroom in the early morning. Chloe was so not letting him get away with that. No way in hell. Had he performed the stereotypical walk of shame should would have teased him mercilessly, asked all the inappropriate question and for one moment possible questioned his mental health. But this, this was no walk of shame, there was no embarrassment, no lame excuses, there was just silence. And juice. That threw Chloe off a bit but it wouldn't stop her, she was determined to make him squirm. She also needed to talk to him about Lois' knowledge. That could probably wait for her third cup of coffee.
'Morning?' Chloe asked incredulously. 'That's all you're going to say? What the heck are you doing here Clark? How did you even get here? When did you get here? Didn't you leave?'
'One, its in the am so yes, two, Lois couldn't sleep. I got this phone call from her at two in the morning asking me what I was dreaming. Three is kind of obvious, four about two this morning, five yes.'
It took Chloe a moment to break that down and make sense of it. Also to silently curse Clark for his morning alertness, especially for someone who was woken up in the middle of the night by way of random phone call. She watched Clark rummage for food and settle for a pop tart when he couldn't find anything else. She knew what she wanted to ask but wasn't sure how to go about it. She could go the way of Lana and approach through a haze of jealousy and rant about Lois and Clark's friendship or she could just come out and ask what the hell was going on.
'Clark, I need to talk to you about something.'
'What's wrong, Chloe?'
'It's Lois. Lately she's been saying things that have me a bit worried.'
'Like what?'
'Well, like the way she blew off, nearly breaking her wrist punching you. The other day I could have sworn I heard her talking on the phone to someone about super strength, and…why do you not look surprised?'
Clark smiled at her and far from feeling relieved Chloe felt even more worried.
'Clark?'
'She was talking to me.'
'What?'
'She knows, Chloe, she knows about me.'
'What?!'