Time in a Bottle, Chapter 4

Clark/Chloe
Season 7, MHE for "Cure"
Rating: Adult. If you're under eighteen, please go elsewhere now.
Disclaimer: These characters belong to the CW and DC Comics, not to me.
Read Chapter 3 here.
Read the story from the beginning here.

"I know this probably sounds really stupid," Clark said, "but I think I'm in love with you."

Chloe was sprawled in the grass next to him, on top of his jacket, and she didn't turn her head to look at him. Her gaze was fixed firmly on the sky above.

"You're right," she answered tartly. "It sounds stupid."

He sighed. "Look, Chlo. I've been doing some thinking..."

"Thinking." She uttered a short, humorless laugh. "Is that what you call it?"

"Could you possibly shut up for a minute?"

"I could. But only if you said anything worth listening to. Which, so far, you haven't."

"Excuse me. I said I love you."

"No. You said you think you're in love with me. Which is clearly stupid. You're in love with Lana Lang. Always have been, always will be."

"Right. Of course. Which explains why you and I just almost had sex in the grass."

"See, this is the way I figure it," she said. Her voice was calm, even, and strangely detached, as if she were talking about research for one of her articles. "You kind of freaked out when I got hurt. I was almost killed, and you barely got there in time to save me. Naturally that made you get a little... emotional."

"A little emotional. Right. Chloe, I almost pissed my pants."

"TMI, farmboy."

"Yeah. Okay. Let me rephrase that. Seeing Dr. Knox in the process of carving your heart out really scared the freaking hell out of me."

"Exactly. That's totally the point I'm trying to make here. You were scared. So was I. So naturally when we found ourselves alone, we sort of... overreacted."

"Right," he agreed, nodding seriously. "Because when people are scared, the first thing they do is always go run off and have sex together."

"It wasn't sex. It was heavy petting."

"Uh-huh. Sure."

"Whatever. The point is, it wasn't about love, Clark. It was about relief."

He sighed. He was lying half naked in a grassy field, next to an even more naked Chloe, and the two of them were arguing like they couldn't think of anything better to do while naked. How typical, he thought wryly.

He was pretty sure she was wrong. What had happened between them hadn't been just about relief. He remembered the words to the song that had run through his head earlier: I've looked around enough to know that you're the one I want to go through time with.

"I still don't think you're hearing me, Chlo," he said at last. "I said, I think I love you."

"And I said, you're full of sh--"

"Okay. Hold it right there. Why are you so sure you know how I feel?"

"Oh, for God's sake, Clark. Everyone knows how you feel. All of Smallville and half of Metropolis knows. I mean, it was even on the front page of the Daily Planet last year, remember?"

"Actually, it was in the B section."

"Still. Everyone in Kansas knows you're in love with Lana Lang."

"Well, okay," he admitted grudgingly. "I guess I thought I was in love with Lana. But I'm reconsidering that."

"Right, because we made out, and your brain is addled from the hormones."

"I beg your pardon. My brain is not addled. Well... no more than usual." He looked over at her. "What about you? You said you wanted me more than you wanted Jimmy."

"I was kind of under stress, Clark. That's all."

He stared at her challengingly. "Are you sure?"

"Um..."

Her hesitation made his heart lift. "Chloe," he said, very softly. "I love you."

She uttered a long, drawn-out sigh. "Look, Clark," she said in a gentler tone, turning her face back to the stars. "Here's the thing. Given the circumstances, it's hard for me to believe you're thinking clearly. I honestly don't think it's unreasonable for me to doubt you, all things considered."

"No. I suppose not." He thought about it. "Tell me this. What do I have to do to convince you I'm serious?"

She considered the matter for a long moment.

"Give it a few days," she said, still looking at the stars instead of him. "Give it a few days, and then we'll talk. If you're still sure you feel that way after a few days... I might just believe you."

Read Chapter 5 here.