Warning: This chapter deals with some of the immediate aftermath of Chloe being raped, so if this hits too close to home or disturbs you, I urge you not to read on, but this is purely emotional turmoil, not a rehashing of the rape itself.
A/N: The section in italics is a kind of flashback/exposition, providing information on how Chloe came to be in her current predicament.

Feedback is welcome. Enjoy.

They give me new clothes and bring me back to my room, but they don't let me shower, not that I ask, but I really wish they would let me.

God, I can still smell him on me, can still feel him inside me.

I want so badly to wash away all remnants of him, of what's been done to me, but it clings to me, tainting me.

My stomach roils as the memory hits me again, and I vomit on the floor next to the bed.

My whole body begins to shake, my knees buckling, and I drop to the floor in a heap.

I want to curl into a ball, but I feel too exposed, so I crawl over to the corner of the room and sit with my back against the wall, my knees pulled tight to my chest.

My mind is racing, trying to comprehend what's just happened to me. I was raped. I was strapped to a table, stripped naked and raped while that son of a bitch stood there and watched. Oh God. I might be pregnant. What if I'm pregnant?

I can feel tears threatening to well up in my eyes, and I fight them back. I won't let him see me cry. I refuse to give him that kind of victory.

Wrapping my arms around my legs, I rest my head on my knees.

Taking slow, deep breaths, I close my eyes, trying to will the horror away by thinking of the past, of a time when I was innocent and carefree.

Unfortunately, all I can think about is how this all started.

It was the summer between Junior and Senior year, and Lex was hiding my father and me from Lionel. Lex and I spent a great deal of time together, and, somehow, an attraction developed. Before I knew what was happening, we were in some sort of quasi-relationship.

I can't deny that it felt good to have someone choose me, especially someone like Lex who could have any woman he wanted.

He made me feel important, valued and cherished. It didn't hurt that the sex was amazing.

When things had quieted down, and I was able to return to my life, I thought things would be perfect, because I had a boyfriend who loved me and put me first, and I had my best friend.

Sadly, things didn't work out quite as I'd hoped.

Lana never came back from her Paris excursion, which was sad, but it was also kinda nice, because I didn't have to watch Clark pine over her anymore.

Clark...

Much as I'd changed over the summer, he'd changed even more. Gone was the meek farm boy who didn't seem to have any real direction in his life, and in his place was a young man who knew exactly where he was going, a man who was driven by something the likes of which I'd never witnessed. He seemed so confident and self-assured, but he was just as secretive as ever.

Even before he knew about me and Lex, there was a distance between us, and once he found out about our relationship, that distance became even greater.

I still remember all the subtle, or not so subtle as the case often was, comments Clark would make about Lex not being who he appeared and that I should be wary of him. Suffice to say, I didn't appreciate Clark trying to drive a wedge between me and Lex, and I became angry at him for his pettiness. I assumed that Clark was jealous, and I wasn't shy about letting him know about it. Though, I couldn't understand why he would be jealous of Lex, especially considering that Clark had never shown any romantic interest in me.

Things finally came to a head when Clark confronted me and gave me the ultimatum, made me choose between him and Lex. I couldn't understand why Clark had such a problem with my relationship with Lex, why he thought Lex wasn't a good man. My time with Lex told me all I needed to know about him, that I could trust him, that he was good and decent, that he loved me. Still, I could see the sincerity in Clark's eyes, the genuine concern, the desperation, and it gave me pause, but only for the briefest of moments. My emotions got the better of me, and I reacted impulsively, choosing Lex over him.

That was the last time I talked to Clark.

Not long after that, Clark just disappeared. No one knew where he'd gone or what had happened to him, not even his parents.

Life went on, as did my relationship with Lex. Although, after Clark disappeared, Lex began to change. He became more distant, almost cold at times. He was always running around working on some secret project or other, and he had less and less time for me.

I was hurt by the distance that had grown between us, but I was determined not to lose him. After all, I'd turned my back on Clark in order to be with Lex. I also didn't want Clark to be right, that Lex wasn't who I thought he was.

I began to push for explanations for why Lex had become so distant, why he didn't have time for me. My inquiries only served to anger him. Things had gotten to the point where I felt the end of our relationship was at hand.

And that's when I found out what Lex had been working on.

Turns out, he'd become obsessed with the meteor infected. He wanted to understand their abilities, all the various types of abilities and how they worked, how and why some people became infected when others didn't. I had even heard, from a source involved with the project, that Lex had been rounding up the meteor infected and experimenting on them against their will.

I knew I had to get away from Lex when my source turned up dead a few days later.

Unfortunately, it was too late.

I was involved in some sort of car accident, and when I woke up, I was in this facility. Not surprisingly, Lex was responsible. In fact, he was at the facility and was more than happy to inform me that I was meteor infected. Apparently, he'd known I was meteor infected for months and had been biding his time, waiting for the perfect opportunity to fake my death so he could study me without worrying that someone would come looking.

I'm stuck in a nightmare, one I fear I may never wake up from. And the worst part is that I haven't got a single shred of hope to cling to. No one is looking for me, no one is going to ride in on a white horse and save me.

I'm alone, a lost soul condemned to suffer in this hell on earth.