Abhinke4u: Aw, I'm not trying to torture you. Thanks for the review!
Lovethechruce: Lol. Those are a lot of really good guesses;)
SilverSnikle: Lol. Thanks! I hope you enjoy the wheelbarrow race. Hopefully it's entertaining;)
Whatareweafraidof, fmdee91, madlenita: Thanks!
The fallen sky: Yeah, my fault. I totally forgot to mention that this story is totally AU; but you did well with your deductive reasoning;) Lol. My favorite part was when Jason was acting like a douche. It really entertained me for some reason. And I'm pretty sure he's threatened by Clark. I imagine he's extremely competitive, especially with Lana's sort of ex. Plus he probably knows that as friends Chlark are more in tune with each other than he and Lana are as a "real" couple." I think he has a reason to be worried;)
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"I gotta say, this is low, Clark. Even for you," Jason says once the two ladies are out of hearing distance.
Clark frowns back at Jason. What does he mean by "low even for him?" What low thing did he do? And what other "low" things have he done? And before Clark can ask, Jason's explaining. "That girl's probably been in love with you since freshman year, and you wait four years to take her out to a couple's fair when you two aren't even a couple!" Jason shakes his head in mock disappointment.
What Jason says makes Clark a little angry; but he stays calm as he answers him. "We are a couple."
Jason laughs a laugh that lacks any humor whatsoever. It's in his eyes, and it's in the exaggerated way he bends over to clutch his belly. Then he comes back up, wiping imaginary tears from his eyes.
"Good one, Clark," he says.
"I'm serious." Clark shrugs casually, deciding his former coach isn't worth any anger from him at all. He's being immature. How'd he ever get hired at a high school? He acts just like the Smallville High football players he used to coach.
On the other hand, maybe the school shouldn't have fired him for dating a high school student after all. Sure, there's an age difference; but mentally Jason's got the mentality of a high school jock. He and Lana are practically the same age.
"Really?" Jason shakes his head, still doubting Clark.
"Yes," Clark answers, still serious and holding Jason's gaze. His eyes don't shift or flicker in the least. He's dead serious.
"Okay, say I believe you," Jason starts off; he's getting just a little uneasy about Clark's steady gaze. "When did you notice you were smitten by Chloe Sullivan?"
"During the couple's registration form," he answers without hesitation.
Ok, that sounds bad, and Clark knew it would; but at the same time he's prepared for more insults from Jason. So he doesn't get upset when Jason says, "So…what, you decided you were in love with her when you realized that you know what her favorite drink and biggest dreams are? You think that makes you two soul mates?" Jason scoffs coldly.
Clark raises his eyes brows in amusement. Chloe's favorite drink is coffee and her biggest dream is to be a reporter for the Daily Planet. Everyone knows that; so how could that help him realize he and Chloe are supposed to be together? It's simple, it can't. Jason's just being an ass, a petty little ass, and that brings a bit of joy and comfort to Clark. To think he's more mature than a man who used to be his coach. If, no, when, Chloe tells him to "grow up" again, he'll be able to tell her that sometimes even growing up doesn't help, thanks to Jason. Yay for ammunition.
Jason cocks an eyebrow and smirks at Clark. He hasn't answered, so that must mean he's stumped him, right? But then Clark smiles wistfully, "No, everybody knows what Chloe's favorite drink is. I decided I wanted Chloe when I couldn't think of anything I wanted our children to inherit from her."
Jason shifts uneasily as he asks, "So what did you put down?"
Clark wrinkles his brow. Didn't he just say that he couldn't think of anything he didn't want his and Chloe's children to inherit from her? "Nothing," Clark says slowly, just in case Jason is, well, a bit slow himself.
"You can't put down nothing. You had to pick something!" Jason says quickly.
Clark smirks. He gets it. Jason put down something he wouldn't want his kids to inherit from Lana. He can name a few things he wouldn't want his kids to inherit from her himself, but he's much more interested in what Jason put down. "Why? What'd you put down?"
Just then the girls appear. "What'd you put down for what?" Lana asks Jason casually. The answers not really important. She just wants to make conversation with the guys. She's feeling a little weird around Chloe; sorry for her even. She doesn't understand why Chloe would agree to come to the couple's fair with Clark knowing that he'll never see her as more than a friend. Why would she set herself up for that kind of hurt?
"It's nothing," Jason says quickly. "Let's go take our place in line."
Chloe gives Clark a questioning look as they begin to follow the other couple to the starting line. He smiles back down at her. He knows she wants to know what they were talking about too; especially since Jason just refused to answer Lana's question. So he answers her.
"I asked Jason what answer he put down for the last question." Clark says loudly enough for Jason and Lana to hear. "The one that asked"-
"I remember what the last question was," Chloe cuts in a little nervously. Why would Clark ask Jason that?
Lana looks back at Clark. She remembers what the last question was too. She had a bit of a hard time answering it. One; she couldn't picture herself and Jason with children. Two; she felt guilty for naming things. It felt slightly wrong to put down that she wouldn't want her children to inherit his nose, or his quick temper, or that nasty habit he has of grinding his teeth together when he's trying to concentrate; but there was a little comfort in knowing that he'll never see what she wrote down. The couple's don't get to see what each other wrote down. The registration is only used for the judges to use as a sort of compatibility guide for each couple. Still, now that it's been mentioned, she wonders what Jason put down. Not only that, but she also finds herself wondering what Clark and Chloe put down. It should be interesting, considering they're not even a real couple.
"Chloe, What'd you put down?" Clark asks while getting down and pressing his hands into the dirt. Both Lana and Jason look over at Chloe and Clark. They're right next to each other because Clark and Chloe are number 15 and Jason and Lana are couple number 14; so, they can hear everything Clark and Chloe have to say to one another, unless they're whispering. But Clark wasn't whispering when he asked Chloe what answer she put down for the last question. And Chloe doesn't answer him, nor does she acknowledge the fact that he's said anything. She's concentrating on picking up Clark's very heavy legs.
She can feel her face going red. Out of the corner of her eye, she can see that Lana's got both of Jason's ankles in her hands. They're in position, so they have nothing better to do than to stare at Chloe and wait for her to answer Clark's question.
Chloe tries her best to ignore them. She's almost got Clark in position. She's got a hold of his right leg and she's reaching for his left, foolishly pretending that she didn't hear him even though it's obvious that Lana and Jason are both watching them because they heard him.
"Chloe?" Clark says again, unnecessarily louder as she heard him the first time. "What'd you put down for the last question?"
Chloe exhales loudly, wishing he'd dropped it when she didn't answer the first time. Can't he see that she doesn't want to answer that question, especially in front of Lana and Jason? They'll give her these pitying looks and wonder why she can't just move on. Everybody else does. Even she does.
"I didn't put down anything, Clark." she sighs. There. She's said it and got it out of the way.
But Clark isn't satisfied by that answer. Just because she didn't put anything down, it doesn't mean she did so for the same reason that he did. It doesn't mean she couldn't think of anything she wouldn't want their children to inherit from him. It could mean that she just couldn't say what she didn't want their kids to inherit from him. She can't very well keep his secret if she writes down that she doesn't want her children to be able to see through buildings or run faster than a bullet. Or what if it's not about his secret? What if she couldn't think of anything because she couldn't imagine ever having children with him?
He can admit it, the thought of having children with Chloe never came to him before either. She's his friend. But when answering the question, his mind automatically went to the "baby making process." Really, if you plan on doing it right, you can't just have kids with anyone. There has to be a relationship first, a connection, marriage, and…well, sex. There's got to be sex. He'd have marry, and have sex with, Chloe in order to have children with her. And as she's his friend, the thought should've freaked him out. It really should've, but it didn't. In fact, he really enjoyed the idea a little more than he should have. He enjoyed the thought so much that he immediately began to think of ways to make it a reality. How could he not have noticed before? Chloe's beautiful, and bright and witty and she's always there for him, and that's his problem. Because she's always there for him, he's never had to see what it's like to be without her. Then he tried to imagine it; right there while filling out his registration form. He tried to imagine a life without Chloe and he couldn't do it. Take anyone else away from him and it'll be rough but he'll get through it because Chloe will be there by his side, helping him through it. Take away Chloe and he'll have no one to lean on. He'll fall.
He wants, needs, to know the reason she didn't put anything down. The right answer, the answer he's looking for, will guarantee their future together. Any other answer…he doesn't even want to think about what any other answer will do to him, or them. And not even them as a couple, but them as friends. He doesn't think he could ever be just friends with Chloe again, especially now that he's imagined a future with her; a married future that involves little Chloes and little Clarks.
He saw them so clearly when he was answering that last question. Little Chloe has dark hair, like his, but otherwise she looks just like her mommy. She's got that smile, the one her mommy has; the one that's so big and bright it'll make you to want to do anything she's asked when it's flashed your way. Only Little Chloe's smile is much cuter than her mommy's because she's missing her two front teeth. It makes him smile every time he sees it on his sweet and innocent child. She's totally got her daddy wrapped around her finger. She even fights with her mommy all the time, competing for her father's attention.
And Little Clark; he's older than Little Chloe by about three years. He's got light hair like his mommy, but otherwise he looks just like his daddy. He's sweet too, like Little Chloe, but he's a sneaky one. He's got this grin, this mischievous, impish, little grin that just screams "I'm up to no good!" He fights with Little Chloe a lot, telling her not to touch his things, to stop following him, or to stop copying him; but he's fiercely overprotective of her. He wouldn't let anyone hurt her, ever. Not even their mommy and daddy.
And then Clark realized it wasn't going to happen. He and Chloe aren't even a real couple. Chloe's not going to be his wife. He's not going to get to have his Little Chloe or his Little Clark, and as strange as it sounds, he missed them as if they had been real people.
He wants that family. He wants Chloe. He wants his Little Chloe. He wants his Little Clark. Hell, he'll even take three little Chloe's and three little Clarks; but he had no hope of having them; especially because right after turning in their forms Chloe told him that they could go home, that they didn't have to stay at the couple's fair.
He'll admit he was a little harsh with her. He'd just lost his Little Chloe and Little Clark. He'd just lost her as his wife and she wanted to go home? She didn't want to spend time with him anymore? He asked her point blank if she wanted to stay. He was hoping her answer would be yes, and if it wasn't yes, then he was going to beg her to stay because he wanted to stay. Somehow he was going to have to make her see that they're good together, better than good; they're perfect together.
Luckily for him she said yes; then he practically tricked her into being his girlfriend. In fact, he's still not very sure she realizes that when he asked if they were a couple now, him and her, that he meant from now on and not just for the fair. Actually, he's fairly certain that she has no idea she's officially his girlfriend now. He was gonna clarify that before but Myra showed up and told him that Chloe's been in love with him for forever and he's been so happy about that that he forgot to do it. Seriously, if Chloe was as in love with him as Myra insinuated, and judging by the way Chloe was blushing he doesn't doubt it, then that means he has a chance. He can have Chloe. He can still get his family.
All Chloe has to do is give him the answer he's looking for and it's a done deal. She just has to tell him that she couldn't think of anything she wouldn't want their children to inherit from him.
"Why didn't you put anything down?" he asks, hoping he sounds mildly interested and not nervous as hell.
She shrugs and continues to reach for his other leg, which she now realizes he's purposely keeping out of her reach. "Clark! Give me your leg," she yells out of pure frustration as she reaches for it again and again. The referee has just told everyone to get into position. The race is about to begin.
"Tell me why you didn't put anything down," he demands.
Chloe doesn't have to look up to know that the couples to their left and right are staring at them now. They've got to be the only ones not ready.
"On your mark!" The referee calls.
"Clark!'
"Tell me!"
"Get set!"
"I couldn't think of anything, Even if my kid came out exactly like you, I'd be okay with that," she gives in, wanting him to hurry and give her his leg before the ref says "Go.".
Immediately he gives her his other leg and she nearly buckles under his weight. Then he turns his head to grin back at her and says, "I couldn't think of anything I don't want our kids to inherit from you either."
She buckles then; lands right on her knees. It was two words he used that did it; two words in particular that made her fall. The word "our," as in his and hers; and the word "kids" as in more than one.
"You alright Chloe?" Clark asks. There's alarm in his voice. He's afraid he's hurt her somehow and he's just about to get up off his hands and see about her when the referee shouts, "Go!"
Chloe gets up quickly. The race. She's got to concentrate on the race. It's the only thing that seems to make any sense right now. She grabs Clark's ankles and begins to wheel him forward. He doesn't budge.
"Chloe?" Clark inquires; but Chloe can't deal right now. She's got to concentrate on the race. She really does or she'll start concentrating on, and over analyzing, what Clark just said about their children. Their children!
"Clark move! We're losing!" She grunts as she tries her best to push him forward.
He looks at her blankly, like he doesn't remember that they're supposed to be racing.
She widens her eyes at him before looking left and right. There's no one there. Why? Because all the other couples are ahead! "Clark, let's go! We can talk later!" she urges him.
Yes; later is good. Even if later is only a minute away from now it's so much better than now. A minute is long enough to think and process information. It's also long enough to forget or rationalize irrational comments that may have been made. And that's exactly what Chloe does as she struggles to wheel Clark forward as quickly as she possibly can. She tells herself that what Clark said didn't really mean anything. He just couldn't bring himself to write anything bad about her because they're not even a real couple. It would've been a waste of ink, no lead. They were given pencils to fill out the forms. And why does it even matter if it was pencil or pen anyway? It's simple. She's losing it. Clark's flustered her.
And because she's flustered she trips and falls over a loose rock. Lucky for her she falls forward. It could've been a rough landing but Clark's backside cushioned her fall.
"You…you dropped me!" Clark exclaims so loud, so dramatically, that it's more than obvious he's feigning shock and anger.
"You're heavy!" Chloe exclaims, glad to be distracted from the thought of their children.
He turns slightly to look at her as she braces her hands on either side of him to push up off the ground. "So that's your excuse! You're not going to admit that you were watching my firm bum bum, got distracted, and that's how you fell!"
She's shocked by what he said, of course, but she only pauses for a millisecond before she starts laughing. Bum bum? Who the hell says bum bum? And did he use an adjective to describe his bum bum? Did he really just say that he's got a firm bum bum?
"Come on Chloe, we're losing!" Clark urges Chloe, mocking her earlier tone.
She's still laughing so it's even harder to support his weight as she lifts his lower half by his ankles. She drops his right leg once and left leg twice. They're so gonna place last.
She's got his legs up now and the laughter is beginning to die down. She takes a few steps; her eyes automatically going to his "bum bum." She can't help it. As he places one arm in front of the other, he exaggeratedly wiggles his rear from left to right.
"Clark!" Chloe laughs as she trips a little more.
"Come on Chloe! We're gonna make it!" he exclaims loudly, wiggling his rear even more.
Laughing isn't something a person should do when he or she is currently in the middle of performing a strenuous task; but Chloe's doing it and it costs her. She falls again, landing on Clark's firm bum bum.
"Chloe!" Clark hisses, as if he's genuinely disappointed in her.
"I'm trying, Clark." Chloe snaps back, but it's not a very serious snap as she's still giggling.
"Well try harder!" he hisses back.
Chloe takes no offense. If he was really reprimanding her, he wouldn't have that huge grin on his face. He's enjoying this just as much as she is. They're actually having fun while losing.
"Okay, okay, I'm coming," Chloe says in between laughs as she stands to her feet. Clark quickly puts his legs back in her arms, making a show of trying to be serious about this race, though they've already lost. Every other couple has crossed the finish line. They're all watching couple number 15.
"Okay, let's do this!" Clark says so cheesily that Chloe starts with the giggles again. Then Clark's bum bum starts the exaggerated swaying and Chloe just wants to get off the field; she wants the race to be over for them, so she tries to make Clark take the rest of the race more seriously. "Stop that," she commands, smacking him right on his bum bum. In front of everyone; which makes her want to take it back. She kinda forgot about the audience.
Clark stops, and turns to look up at Chloe. She just smacked his rear. She…spanked him. In front of everyone. Men don't get spanked in front of others.
"You dare touch my firm bum bum?"
That does it! Chloe can no longer stand and support his weight. She's laughing way too hard. She drops his legs and clutches her belly. Tears, real tears, have come to her eyes.
"Come on Chloe! We gotta finish the race," Clark says. His face isn't completely strait, but he's keeping it together a hell of a lot better than she is.
"I c-can't," she hiccups.
"Sure you can," he says as he lifts one leg in the air and waits for her to grab it.
She gets up, but not all the way. She's still doubled over, laughing, and holding a stitch in her side. She grabs at his leg, but it's such a weak grasp that Clark doesn't even bother to lift the other leg. She's not going to be able to hold him. And since Chloe can't hold him, he'll have to hold her because they are finishing this race. This couples race; they're finishing as a couple, no matter what the rules are.
He stands up. "Get down," he tells her. She barely has time to hiccup out a response before he takes her legs in his hands. Instinctively she braces her palms against the earth so that she doesn't land on her face.
She nearly tells him that they're breaking the rules. She's supposed to be supporting him, but the words die on her tongue. They're already in last place. Does it really matter how they finish the race? They probably don't even need to finish the race.
But they do finish, and surprisingly there's a very loud round of applause. Chloe suspects that it's because everyone's so happy they're finally finished.
Clark takes Chloe's hand and raises it high, making a very big show of their "victory." It's another thing that makes Chloe laugh. He's acting as if they won first place, and the other couples are still clapping as if they had!
"They should be disqualified," she hears Jason say over the applause. "Chloe was supposed to carry Clark. That's the rule."
"They came in last. What would they be disqualified from?" This from Lana. And she sounds pissed. Not just pissed in general, but her anger is specifically directed at Jason. Chloe frowns at couple number 14. She has no idea why Lana would be angry. According to that ribbon pinned onto her chest, she and Jason won first place.
"Oh my god! That was so romantic!"
Romantic? Chloe's eyes widen and she stops giving Lana her attention, instead she focuses on the couple in front of them. Doug and Myra.
"I mean, Chloe couldn't go any longer and it was like you just said "screw the rules we're finishing this race even if I have to change the rules!"" Myra practically swoons at Clark.
Clark smiles back at Myra and removes his hand from Chloe's. Before she can miss it, he's sliding it around her waist and resting his fingers on her hip. "Yeah, I'd to anything for Chloe." He says with a light shrug. He's still smiling but his voice has taken on a serious tone. Meaning he's not joking. He really would do anything for her, and Myra easily reads that in his tone and in his stance.
"I'm so happy for you, Chloe!" she gushes while pulling Chloe into a hug.
"Uh, thanks," Chloe says.
"You two just might win the Ultimate Couple," she squeals before rushing off for another event, towing Doug behind her.
Chloe shakes her head after Myra. There's no way she and Clark can win. They came in dead last on the wheelbarrow relay, not to mention the cheated at the end. Plus, they're not even a real couple.
Clark takes that moment to squeeze Chloe's hip lightly. She looks up at him, noticing for the first time where his hand is resting. He smiles down at her. "You ready for the next event?"
Chloe audibly gulps. It's the way Clark's looking at her; and it's the way he's touching her. It's almost possessive. Almost like she's his and he's hers. Almost like they're a real couple.