Disclaimer: see Chapter 1
CHAPTER 4: Internal Struggle
Lex was sitting on his swivel chair gazing out of the tinted windows at the building across the street. His eyes travelled up and stopped at the floor where he knew the editorial office of The Planet was.
His morning argument with Chloe had unsettled him and, no matter how hard he tried, he could not stop his mind from replaying the words she had spat at him: ´You gave up on our friendship, Lex. I´ve always wondered why. ´ ´You can lie to her but not to me. ´ ´You´re a coward, Lex Luthor. ´
Lex pinched his nose and massaged his neck in an attempt to relieve the strained muscles. The blond spitfire had always been a force to be reckoned with. She was extremely talented, loyal, reliable, giving and- above all- straight-forward; she would never stab anyone in the back. If there was anything she had to say, she would say it straight in your face, and he respected her for that. However, that straight-forwardness, and her unquenchable thirst for the truth, rendered her the least advisable woman to have around when one was involved in shady business; and he was way too deep now.
Chloe was right about something; while he would never be able to hide the truth from her, he knew how to manipulate Lana. The brunette was pliable dough in his hands and, though fickle in her alliances, she could be easily outsmarted. Chloe was his equal on every level, but he was afraid of not being able to protect her if she got too close to him and the truth. Better hurt her now than live regretting what might happen to her because of him.
Lex put some confidential reports away in the safe, turned off the desk lamp and walked to the lift. He arrived at the lobby in no time and ambled to the front door to see himself out for the day. He usually took the elevator all the way down to the basement, where he parked his Porsche, but that evening he was not driving back to Smallville. He had called Lana earlier in the afternoon, informing her he would stay over at the penthouse. She had sounded disappointed on the phone, and it wasn´t until later in the evening he realised it was Valentine´s Day. His mind had been too full of another woman to remember his girlfriend´s favourite celebration. He would have to pick up something special at the jeweller´s the following morning to compensate for the faux-pas.
Lex climbed down the front steps of Luthorcorp Plaza and was loosening his tie when he spotted the blond reporter coming out of The Daily Planet. He stopped dead on his tracks, saw her hail a taxi and then dismiss it with an apology. She looked lost and unsure of which way to go. ´Where´s that damn Jimmy Olsen on Valentine´s Day?´asked Lex to himself. After a couple of minutes, Chloe started to walk and, when she was half way down the street, Lex made up his mind and followed her to see where she was going alone in the evening. Metropolis was not Gotham, but muggers and rapists were the same everywhere, and Lex did not want to have that on his conscience.
Chloe walked three blocks unscathed thanks to the deterring presence of Lex, who managed to convey with his body language that whoever happened to mess with the girl in front of him would pay dear. Lex breathed relieved when she entered a small Italian restaurant, Enrico´s, and saw her walk to the back of the shop. ´She´s safe. You should leave now. She must have agreed with Olsen to meet here after work. Wait a minute... What´s the waiter doing taking away the second service? What the hell is she doing alone on Valentine´s Day? It´s none of your business, Lex. She´s got Clark. Let him worry about her, ´ he thought, turning round to leave. ´Come to think of it, she used to consider you her friend, and friends watch over each other, don´t they? OK. You´ll stay, but you´ll sit where she won´t see you. You´ll just make sure she´s all right, ´ decided the younger Luthor, and braced himself for the torture of watching her from afar.
Does it look promising? There´ll be Chlex interaction in my next posting!