Chlark Fanfic: Crisis, Chapter 23
Hi everyone! :D
Some more Crisis, as promised. Again, in response to a valid question raised from the previous chapter.
Enjoy! And thanks so much for all your wonderful feedback. As you can see, it makes the story richer, and longer. :)
Title: Crisis
Author: BabyDee
Pairing: Chlark/Kaloe
Rating: NC-17 (this chapter PG-13)
Warnings: Angst
Timeline: Season 2-3 (Exodus - Exile; Clark’s RedK Summer & beyond)
Disclaimer: All known characters belong to the CW & DC comics
Summary: A violent encounter between Chloe and Clark threatens to destroy their friendship forever.
Feedback: …is love. :)
Read previous chapter here.
Read story from the beginning here.
Chapter 23
The moment Clark arrived home, he knew he was in trouble. His mother was standing on the porch with folded arms, tapping her foot restlessly.
He soon found out why.
“So when exactly were you going to tell us about how you nearly died in a Luthorcorp elevator, hmm?”
Crap. He should have known the incident in Metropolis wouldn’t stay hidden forever. If he were honest, he was surprised she hadn’t found out sooner.
He swallowed and gave his mother a reassuring smile. “It wasn’t anything serious, Mom.”
“No?” she queried, and waved a sheaf of papers in his face. “This says otherwise, Clark. You were taken to Met Gen in an ambulance!”
Busted. “I thought Luthorcorp were going to take care of that,” he muttered.
“They paid for it, yes,” she grated. “And the hospital was kind enough to provide us with a copy of the invoice, or we might never have known. How could you keep something like this from us, Clark?”
Clark sighed heavily. When did the world become so darned efficient?
“Did you honestly think we wouldn’t find out?” she blazed on. “I’ve had Sara Samson from the Ledger asking me how you’re faring after your trip to the brink of death, and I had no idea what she was talking about! What exactly happened to you?”
He rubbed his eyes wearily. “I told you, it was nothing serious-”
“Then why hide it from us?” she cried. “And that’s not all you’ve been hiding. According to Sara’s daughter, you’ve been having fainting spells for more than a month! Fainting spells? You?”
Shit. The perils of living in a small town...
Clark swallowed and stared at the floor. “I didn’t want you to worry,” he said quietly.
Martha Kent folded her arms and sighed. “Sit down, honey,” she said, and pulled up a chair herself. “Let’s start with today. What happened to you in that elevator? Was it kryptonite?”
He supposed it couldn’t really have been anything else. “Yeah.”
“How did it get there?”
“I...don’t know,” he finished lamely.
“Oh, God.” His mother’s face paled, and her eyes widened. “Please tell me it isn’t Lionel. If he knows your secret-”
“No Mom, it’s nothing like that,” he hastily reassured her.
Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Then what is it ‘like’?’” she quizzed. “Because I get the distinct feeling this was no accident. Did someone douse you with kryptonite deliberately?”
He looked away. “Of course not.”
His mother snorted. “I’m your mother, Clark. I know when you’re lying,” she insisted, her voice firm and authoritative. “Who did this to you? Tell me the truth!”
“Okay!” he said helplessly. “Okay, I will, just…promise me you won’t tell Dad. Please.”
Martha’s faced paled and her eyes widened in horror. “Oh, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us all,” she said hollowly. “Chloe?”
“Mom-”
“It’s Chloe, isn’t it?” she continued, rising slowly and staring in disbelief. “She’s using kryptonite on you.”
He gulped. “Mom, it’s not as bad as it sounds-”
“Are you kidding me?” she roared. “Listen to yourself, Clark! She almost killed you!”
“She didn’t mean to, it was an accident this time!” he defended loudly. “She had no idea the elevator was going to stall, otherwise she would never have-”
“This time?” she echoed, her voice a shaky whisper. “There have been other times? She’s done this before?”
Oh, shit. Shit, shit, shit.
He held up his hands. “Mom, let me explain…”
“My God, what has she been doing to you?” Martha cried. “Those ‘fainting spells’ - it’s all been Chloe, deliberately hurting you, hasn’t it?”
“You don’t understand-”
“What is there to understand?” she yelled incredulously.
“She’s scared of me, Mom! She just...needs to feel safe-”
“By torturing you? Clark, that’s...that’s sick!” she raged. “You gave her that kryptonite because you trusted her, and this is how she repays you? I’m calling your father right now!”
Clark stared in alarm as his mother she strode over to the counter and picked up the phone.
“You promised you wouldn’t tell him!” he exclaimed.
“I promised nothing,” she shot back, furiously punching the numbers. “And I won’t sit by while Chloe terrorises and tortures you to death!”
“I don’t care if she hurts me,” he replied flatly. “After what I did to her, I deserve it.”
His mother stopped dialling and stared at him as if he’d taken leave of his senses.
“Oh, Clark,” she said brokenly, taking his hand. “I’m not saying Chloe doesn’t have a right to be angry with you, because she does. And yes, you do deserve to be punished for what you did to her, but not like this. I know you hurt her-”
“No, Mom, I raped her!” he cried as his mother winced at the word in all its ugliness. “I held her down, tore off her clothes and I raped her!”
“Clark, don’t,” she pleaded.
He ignored her. “She was crying and struggling and pleading with me to stop, but I didn’t listen. She said no, over and over, and I just covered her mouth with my hand and-”
“Stop it!” Martha sobbed, covering her ears. “Please stop, Clark. I can’t hear this. I can’t...”
He stopped, tears coursing down his cheeks even as his mother wept, confronted with the cold, hard misery of the truth.
“You see?” he said softly. “That’s what she has to live with everyday. And I’m not some stranger that jumped out of the bushes, I was her best friend, Mom. Her best friend...”
His mother didn’t reply. She sobbed brokenly for several minutes, unable to speak.
“That’s why I have to go through this,” he went on. “Chloe may be hurting me, but what I did to her was far worse.”
Eventually Martha wiped her face and slowly sat at the table.
“I can’t even begin to imagine how betrayed she must feel,” she finally said, sniffing. “Just trying to think about it breaks my heart.
“But Clark; what she’s doing to you…this isn’t the way to punish you. She’s doing exactly what you did to her, which is use a position of trust to abuse you. Can’t you see that this can only make things worse?”
“I don’t know what else to do, Mom,” he said with a despondent sigh.
“There are proper ways to go about this,” she replied. “Your Dad and I, we can go to the police station with you and you can own up to what you did...”
“I’m ready to go, but Chloe doesn’t want that.”
She frowned. “Why not?”
“She said that prison won’t hold me, and I can escape whenever I want to. I wouldn’t do that, I’m ready to do my time, but-”
“But she can’t take you at your word anymore,” she finished, understanding the problem.
He nodded. “Also…she knows you lost a baby, Mom. She doesn’t want to take me away from you, too.”
Martha gaped. “What? Is that why she doesn’t want to turn you in?”
He sighed helplessly. “I don’t know. There may be other reasons…I think she’s trying to do what’s best for everyone.”
“But what about what’s best for her?” she replied. “Seeing you walking around everyday has to be extremely traumatic for her!”
“That’s why she does what she does, Mom,” he explained. “Hurting me a little...I guess it makes her feel like less of a victim.”
Martha ran a hand through her hair and sighed heavily.
“Clark, I feel so bad for her, but my God, this isn’t the way, and I’m not just saying that because you’re my son,” she insisted. “Chloe needs counselling, she needs to talk to someone about what happened to her.”
“I know, Mom, but who?” he argued. “Who’s she going to tell that she was raped by an alien?”
Martha looked away, conflict in her sad gaze. “So what, she continues to torture you to keep you in line?” she asked.
“She needs this,” he said stubbornly.
“This isn’t therapy, Clark, it’s a recipe for disaster. She could easily kill you, whether she means to or not.” She leaned towards him and her eyes filled with tears again. “And sooner or later you’re going to get frustrated and angry with what she’s doing, and you’re going to snap. And then what?”
He doubted that was possible, but even so, things were likely to improve soon. Lex had texted him to say that he’d had a breakthrough in finding Gabe Sullivan a job, and he just needed to confirm one or two details before making a confirmation.
“Just give me a few more days,” he pleaded. “I know what I’m doing, Mom. Please trust me on this.”
“Clark…” she sighed.
“Please,” he begged. “I don’t believe she’ll hurt me again; she’s had the opportunity to do so several times this week, but she hasn’t. I really think she’s getting better.”
Martha’s shoulders sagged, and she reluctantly relented.
“Two days,” she finally conceded. “And improvement or not, I’m talking to your father. There has to be another way for both of you to heal, and we need to start thinking about what that might be.”
***
Chapter 24 … http://babydee1.livejournal.com/137188.html
*whines* When are they gonna fix the darned link box? :-(
Some more Crisis, as promised. Again, in response to a valid question raised from the previous chapter.
Enjoy! And thanks so much for all your wonderful feedback. As you can see, it makes the story richer, and longer. :)
Title: Crisis
Author: BabyDee
Pairing: Chlark/Kaloe
Rating: NC-17 (this chapter PG-13)
Warnings: Angst
Timeline: Season 2-3 (Exodus - Exile; Clark’s RedK Summer & beyond)
Disclaimer: All known characters belong to the CW & DC comics
Summary: A violent encounter between Chloe and Clark threatens to destroy their friendship forever.
Feedback: …is love. :)
Read previous chapter here.
Read story from the beginning here.
Chapter 23
The moment Clark arrived home, he knew he was in trouble. His mother was standing on the porch with folded arms, tapping her foot restlessly.
He soon found out why.
“So when exactly were you going to tell us about how you nearly died in a Luthorcorp elevator, hmm?”
Crap. He should have known the incident in Metropolis wouldn’t stay hidden forever. If he were honest, he was surprised she hadn’t found out sooner.
He swallowed and gave his mother a reassuring smile. “It wasn’t anything serious, Mom.”
“No?” she queried, and waved a sheaf of papers in his face. “This says otherwise, Clark. You were taken to Met Gen in an ambulance!”
Busted. “I thought Luthorcorp were going to take care of that,” he muttered.
“They paid for it, yes,” she grated. “And the hospital was kind enough to provide us with a copy of the invoice, or we might never have known. How could you keep something like this from us, Clark?”
Clark sighed heavily. When did the world become so darned efficient?
“Did you honestly think we wouldn’t find out?” she blazed on. “I’ve had Sara Samson from the Ledger asking me how you’re faring after your trip to the brink of death, and I had no idea what she was talking about! What exactly happened to you?”
He rubbed his eyes wearily. “I told you, it was nothing serious-”
“Then why hide it from us?” she cried. “And that’s not all you’ve been hiding. According to Sara’s daughter, you’ve been having fainting spells for more than a month! Fainting spells? You?”
Shit. The perils of living in a small town...
Clark swallowed and stared at the floor. “I didn’t want you to worry,” he said quietly.
Martha Kent folded her arms and sighed. “Sit down, honey,” she said, and pulled up a chair herself. “Let’s start with today. What happened to you in that elevator? Was it kryptonite?”
He supposed it couldn’t really have been anything else. “Yeah.”
“How did it get there?”
“I...don’t know,” he finished lamely.
“Oh, God.” His mother’s face paled, and her eyes widened. “Please tell me it isn’t Lionel. If he knows your secret-”
“No Mom, it’s nothing like that,” he hastily reassured her.
Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Then what is it ‘like’?’” she quizzed. “Because I get the distinct feeling this was no accident. Did someone douse you with kryptonite deliberately?”
He looked away. “Of course not.”
His mother snorted. “I’m your mother, Clark. I know when you’re lying,” she insisted, her voice firm and authoritative. “Who did this to you? Tell me the truth!”
“Okay!” he said helplessly. “Okay, I will, just…promise me you won’t tell Dad. Please.”
Martha’s faced paled and her eyes widened in horror. “Oh, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us all,” she said hollowly. “Chloe?”
“Mom-”
“It’s Chloe, isn’t it?” she continued, rising slowly and staring in disbelief. “She’s using kryptonite on you.”
He gulped. “Mom, it’s not as bad as it sounds-”
“Are you kidding me?” she roared. “Listen to yourself, Clark! She almost killed you!”
“She didn’t mean to, it was an accident this time!” he defended loudly. “She had no idea the elevator was going to stall, otherwise she would never have-”
“This time?” she echoed, her voice a shaky whisper. “There have been other times? She’s done this before?”
Oh, shit. Shit, shit, shit.
He held up his hands. “Mom, let me explain…”
“My God, what has she been doing to you?” Martha cried. “Those ‘fainting spells’ - it’s all been Chloe, deliberately hurting you, hasn’t it?”
“You don’t understand-”
“What is there to understand?” she yelled incredulously.
“She’s scared of me, Mom! She just...needs to feel safe-”
“By torturing you? Clark, that’s...that’s sick!” she raged. “You gave her that kryptonite because you trusted her, and this is how she repays you? I’m calling your father right now!”
Clark stared in alarm as his mother she strode over to the counter and picked up the phone.
“You promised you wouldn’t tell him!” he exclaimed.
“I promised nothing,” she shot back, furiously punching the numbers. “And I won’t sit by while Chloe terrorises and tortures you to death!”
“I don’t care if she hurts me,” he replied flatly. “After what I did to her, I deserve it.”
His mother stopped dialling and stared at him as if he’d taken leave of his senses.
“Oh, Clark,” she said brokenly, taking his hand. “I’m not saying Chloe doesn’t have a right to be angry with you, because she does. And yes, you do deserve to be punished for what you did to her, but not like this. I know you hurt her-”
“No, Mom, I raped her!” he cried as his mother winced at the word in all its ugliness. “I held her down, tore off her clothes and I raped her!”
“Clark, don’t,” she pleaded.
He ignored her. “She was crying and struggling and pleading with me to stop, but I didn’t listen. She said no, over and over, and I just covered her mouth with my hand and-”
“Stop it!” Martha sobbed, covering her ears. “Please stop, Clark. I can’t hear this. I can’t...”
He stopped, tears coursing down his cheeks even as his mother wept, confronted with the cold, hard misery of the truth.
“You see?” he said softly. “That’s what she has to live with everyday. And I’m not some stranger that jumped out of the bushes, I was her best friend, Mom. Her best friend...”
His mother didn’t reply. She sobbed brokenly for several minutes, unable to speak.
“That’s why I have to go through this,” he went on. “Chloe may be hurting me, but what I did to her was far worse.”
Eventually Martha wiped her face and slowly sat at the table.
“I can’t even begin to imagine how betrayed she must feel,” she finally said, sniffing. “Just trying to think about it breaks my heart.
“But Clark; what she’s doing to you…this isn’t the way to punish you. She’s doing exactly what you did to her, which is use a position of trust to abuse you. Can’t you see that this can only make things worse?”
“I don’t know what else to do, Mom,” he said with a despondent sigh.
“There are proper ways to go about this,” she replied. “Your Dad and I, we can go to the police station with you and you can own up to what you did...”
“I’m ready to go, but Chloe doesn’t want that.”
She frowned. “Why not?”
“She said that prison won’t hold me, and I can escape whenever I want to. I wouldn’t do that, I’m ready to do my time, but-”
“But she can’t take you at your word anymore,” she finished, understanding the problem.
He nodded. “Also…she knows you lost a baby, Mom. She doesn’t want to take me away from you, too.”
Martha gaped. “What? Is that why she doesn’t want to turn you in?”
He sighed helplessly. “I don’t know. There may be other reasons…I think she’s trying to do what’s best for everyone.”
“But what about what’s best for her?” she replied. “Seeing you walking around everyday has to be extremely traumatic for her!”
“That’s why she does what she does, Mom,” he explained. “Hurting me a little...I guess it makes her feel like less of a victim.”
Martha ran a hand through her hair and sighed heavily.
“Clark, I feel so bad for her, but my God, this isn’t the way, and I’m not just saying that because you’re my son,” she insisted. “Chloe needs counselling, she needs to talk to someone about what happened to her.”
“I know, Mom, but who?” he argued. “Who’s she going to tell that she was raped by an alien?”
Martha looked away, conflict in her sad gaze. “So what, she continues to torture you to keep you in line?” she asked.
“She needs this,” he said stubbornly.
“This isn’t therapy, Clark, it’s a recipe for disaster. She could easily kill you, whether she means to or not.” She leaned towards him and her eyes filled with tears again. “And sooner or later you’re going to get frustrated and angry with what she’s doing, and you’re going to snap. And then what?”
He doubted that was possible, but even so, things were likely to improve soon. Lex had texted him to say that he’d had a breakthrough in finding Gabe Sullivan a job, and he just needed to confirm one or two details before making a confirmation.
“Just give me a few more days,” he pleaded. “I know what I’m doing, Mom. Please trust me on this.”
“Clark…” she sighed.
“Please,” he begged. “I don’t believe she’ll hurt me again; she’s had the opportunity to do so several times this week, but she hasn’t. I really think she’s getting better.”
Martha’s shoulders sagged, and she reluctantly relented.
“Two days,” she finally conceded. “And improvement or not, I’m talking to your father. There has to be another way for both of you to heal, and we need to start thinking about what that might be.”
***
Chapter 24 … http://babydee1.livejournal.com/137188.html
*whines* When are they gonna fix the darned link box? :-(