The Fourth

Clark/Chloe
Seasons 1-3
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: These characters belong to the CW and DC Comics, not to me.

The first time Clark kissed Chloe was an accident. But a good one.

It wasn't even right to say he kissed her, not really. She kissed him. She'd been hypnotized or whatever into thinking she loved him, and she slid her hands up his chest, grabbed his collar, and pulled him into a kiss.

And he'd liked it. A lot.

But she didn't even remember it, so there wasn't a lot of point in talking about it afterward. There wasn't a lot of point in thinking about it, either.

But he did anyway.

*****

The second time he kissed her was an accident. But a good one.

Pete had slipped a little red rock into his pocket, thus stripping him of his self-control. Clark didn't find out about it till much later. But before he figured out what had happened, he'd found himself making out with Chloe (who was high on an extraterrestrial parasite). In his barn. In Pete's car. In the Talon.

Chloe didn't remember a bit of it. But he did. Her kisses had been hot, and having her in his lap, pressing against him, running her hands over him, had been even hotter.

And he'd liked it. A lot.

But she didn't remember it, so there wasn't a lot of point in talking about it afterward. There wasn't a lot of point in thinking about it, either.

But he did anyway.

*****

The third time he kissed her was an accident. But a good one.

They'd been in a hospital file room together, and when the door opened, she suddenly grabbed him by his collar and shoved him up against the file cabinet. And before he knew it he'd found himself with a sexy blonde plastered up against his front.

He hadn't minded. Not at all.

In fact, when the doctor had interrupted them, and it had slowly dawned on his bewildered brain that Chloe was just covering, pretending they'd gone into the file room to make out instead of looking at private files, he'd been unable to hold back the disappointment that flooded him.

And when she walked out the door... well, yeah, he was totally disappointed. He'd wanted to kiss her again.

Because he'd liked it. A lot.

But it had just been an act, so there wasn't a lot of point in talking about it afterward. There wasn't a lot of point in thinking about it, either.

But he did anyway.

*****

The fourth time he kissed her wasn't an accident.

On the Fourth of July, he and Chloe and a bunch of kids from high school headed out to Crater Lake to see Lowell County's firework display (which a flyer informed them was funded by a generous grant from LuthorCorp). The two of them sat on the grass together, the stars glittering overhead, fireflies dancing around them in the darkness.

When the fireworks began, he shot surreptitious glances at her, watching her beautiful, animated face light up, both from the glow of the lights in the sky and from within. She looked so excited, like she was a little kid again, and something melted inside him. He loved her when she was like this, so animated and enthusiastic, so happy.

She didn't notice him looking at her, because her eyes were trained on the sky. She squealed at a particularly beautiful burst of fireworks, and clapped her hands in childlike delight.

And without the slightest intention of doing so, he leaned over and planted a kiss right on her lips.

She looked away from the fireworks and stared at him. Her eyes were wide with surprise, but he didn't think she looked displeased, just startled.

He smiled at her.

"Happy fourth," he said.

He knew she wouldn't really understand what he was saying, because she didn't even remember all the kisses they'd shared. She couldn't know this was their fourth kiss. But he still felt like it was the right time to kiss her, on a perfect summer evening, beneath the stars, beneath the glow of the fireworks that lit the sky in vivid color.

And she must have agreed. Because she leaned toward him, and her hands slid up his chest, just like they'd done the very first time they'd kissed.

And then they were kissing again, soft, gentle kisses that slowly shifted into one long, passionate kiss that went on and on and on. Clark forgot about the fireworks, forgot that there were other people around, forgot everything except the soft armful of blonde against his chest.

He liked kissing her. He liked it even more because it wasn't an act or an accident. It was very deliberate on both their parts, and he was glad.

He had a feeling he'd be thinking about kissing her, here beneath the fireworks that filled the sky, for the rest of his life.

But right now he wasn't thinking at all, just happy that tonight, they'd shared their fourth kiss.

And their fifth, and sixth, and seventh, and eighth, and...

-The End-