"Hey."

Davis head snapped up at the soft greeting to see Chloe standing before him. Her bright hair shone in the afternoon light. He couldn't help his smile as he replied, "Hey." He scooted over on the bench to give her room to sit down.

She sat, but he noticed the careful distance she kept between them.

They were both silent for a long moment, unsure how to proceed.

"Chloe, I'm sorry -"
"Davis, I don't -"

They stumbled over their own words, but somehow the halted phrases broke the tension between them and they found they were smiling at each other.

"This is weird for you too, isn't it?" Chloe asked, tilting her head slightly in question.

Davis felt a half-smile curl his lips. "You have no idea." He glanced away then back at her. "I mean...even just hearing my name again. It's strange. I haven't been 'Davis' for years now." He looked away and his smile faltered. "I'm not sure I want to be him again."

Chloe searched his face. "Who do you want to be?"

Davis looked back at her, his eyes deep and intent. "Are you sure you want to know?"

Chloe swallowed. She wasn't sure of the answer. Deep in her heart, part of her screamed YES! but another part of her remembered all the pain he had caused - remembered Jimmy's awful death, and that the creature who had done that had been born from this man. Remembered how broken she had been afterwards and how Davis had left without her knowing he was even alive. Remembered he had said he was back because of Doomsday and the quakes - he wasn't back because of her.

He's not safe, Chloe!

Clark was right about that.

So why was she here?

She cleared her throat, ignoring his question to which she didn't really have an answer. "So I don't know what you expected to happen when you came back, but I'm guessing what happened in Watchtower earlier wasn't it."

Davis rubbed his jaw as that old charming half-smile of his returned to his face. "No. Definitely not what I expected."

Chloe smiled. "I'd say I was sorry, but I'm not."

Davis dropped his hand, but kept smiling back. "No. And I must admit you were justified." He paused, then continued. "Though I hope going forward, we can meet on more friendly terms."

Chloe smiled again, looking at him. "Well, I've been here almost three full minutes, and I haven't punched you yet."

He smiled and nodded. "True, but it took you a bit to work up to the first one. I don't think I'm out of the woods yet."

"Also true."

"Is there anything I can do to diffuse any upcoming blows?"

Chloe bit her lip, thinking for a moment. He was giving her an opening to ask him something, but she wasn't sure what to ask, or even if she wanted an answer. She was also pretty sure Clark was watching them, and most likely listening in as well. Of all the questions she had for Davis, she wasn't sure if she wanted Clark to know the answers too. So she settled on something impersonal.

"You could tell me how you knew to come back here. You were on a completely different continent, so you couldn't have felt the quakes, and I doubt you had much of a news cycle in the rain forest."

Davis smile skittered away, and Chloe found herself sorry to see it go. She quickly chided herself for the foolish feeling.

Davis had knitted his hand together as if he was praying, and for a time Chloe wasn't sure if he would answer when his soft voice started, "I've been having dreams."

"Dreams?"

"Yeah. Or actually, nightmares. Of Doomsday rising again and coming after Metropolis again. After Clark." He turned to face her with worried eyes. "After you."

"Me?" Chloe asked in surprise. "Why would he come after me now? I don't have any power over it, not since -"

Davis nodded, looking at her with bottomless brown eyes. "But you did. Through me. And it wants to destroy me and everything I hold - I mean held - dear."

Chloe didn't know how to respond to that. He had corrected himself, but she somehow felt he had done so for her sake, so as not to scare her. Did that mean he still loved her? No, it was impossible. It had been years and he had never once tried to contact her. If he had loved her, he would have reached out, surely?

Davis' words came back to her - She threatened you, Chloe! She would have hurt or killed you!

Chloe shook her head, chasing the confusing conflict of emotions away, and refocused on the matter at hand. "So you came back to Metropolis because of some bad dreams?"

This time, it was Davis who shook his head. "No. I'd been having the dreams for weeks. I came when I felt the first quake."

"But you were -" Chloe started to say.

He shook his head again, cutting her off. "Not that I actually felt the quake, I mean. I felt Doomsday through the quake. I felt the monster trying to break free." He looked at her with frightened eyes. "Chloe, I was thousands of miles away and I felt it. I felt the-the wrongness of The Beast surging up, and I knew I had to come back." He looked away again, and she felt there was more to the story, but after a long moment, it became clear he wasn't going to elaborate any further.

"So you came and found me at Watchtower."

Davis lips quirked in a self-depreciating way. "Actually, I was trying to find Clark. Then the second quake hit, and I found myself rushing for here." He turned the smile on her. "I guess it was foolish for me to think I could come here and not see you."

Chloe ignored the meaning she sensed seething under the comment and laughed it off instead. "Yeah, well, a few weeks ago, you wouldn't have found me here."

Davis smile faded. "Oh yes, I'd heard." He glanced down at her naked left hand pointedly.

Chloe again ignored the obvious question, and asked one of her own instead. "So you came to Watchtower looking for...Clark?"

"No, I didn't say that. I said I was looking for Clark, then found myself at Watchtower." He smiled wryly. "Turns out I was really looking for you."

Chloe didn't know what to say to that. Too many thoughts and feelings were pressing in on her at his sudden reappearance. She needed time to think, to process.

"Davis - "

He cut her off. "I know Chloe. It's a lot. We can just focus on the mission." Again he gave that warm half-smile that still had a shockingly melting effect on her senses. "I mean, it is an indestructible killing machine from another planet out to destroy the city, Superman, and the world. That should give us a little bit of distraction."

She couldn't help the laughter that burst forth at his succinct description of the problem. "Oh yes, and don't forget the possible involvement of an evil genius billionaire as well."

"Ah yes, him too, of course."

Chloe got up from the bench. "Well, that said, I've got to head back inside. If we are going to do this thing tonight, there is some planning that must be done."

"Alright," Davis nodded in reply.

Chloe turned to leave, when Davis voice stopped her. "Chloe, I know nothing is like it was, but that doesn't mean we can't be friends again."

She turned back to look at him. He had his hands clasped still, and his eyes were deep brown pools at they gazed at her. She took a step back to him. "You're right, Davis. It isn't like it was." She paused turning things over in her mind. "As for being friends...I don't know. There is still so much...unresolved. We will have to see." She turned away again and started back to the tower, when she heard him call out to her.

"I think it can work, Chloe. We're already making progress. You were here for almost a half-hour and didn't punch me!"

She didn't turn back at his words, but Chloe ducked her head to hide her smile as she walked back into Watchtower.