fic: study of a betrayal (Smallville; Lois; rating: pg13)
Title: Study of a Betrayal
Rating: PG13
Characters: Lois & Chloe deal with Clark’s disappearance
Spoilers: up to 8x22 “Doomsday”
Summary: She supposed that she couldn’t blame them for being scared, but sometimes, not being trusted really hurt.
Word Count: 2,800
AN: Could be seen as following my Garth & Lois one shot, where people are better liars than Clark so Lois doesn’t learn of his identity. She returns not knowing she was so far into the future.
“This is great Lois. With what you’ve dug up on Senator Carlton, we’ll be able to really bring some heat to the next negotiation. Get some rights back for our people.” Garth was smiling enthusiastically at her again, as if she’d just discovered gravity. It was a harmless crush, but still flattering for her.
It was nice to feel wanted for a change, instead of always pushed away.
“Remember not to back down; you’ve got just as much right to be here as he does.”
“Well, we shouldn’t keep you away from your job much longer.” Rokk said as he entered the make-shift workspace Lois and Garth had been using. He and Imra didn’t visit much and seemed annoyed that Garth spent so much of his time with Lois. If it had only been one of them, she would have suspected jealousy but since they both voiced objections, the only choice left meant that they disapproved of her.
She could tell by the way they cautiously chose their words around her, as if afraid to reveal too much of themselves to the outsider that can’t be trusted. She supposed that they must have learnt to be cautious after being persecuted the way they’d been.
Still, that was no excuse for rudeness.
“What job? If being dumped here wasn’t enough of a sign, I’m sure that missing the last few weeks of work is more than enough for Tess to fire me.”
“You know what we mean; you’ll have to go back to Metropolis soon.”
“Yeah, I guess I’ve kinda been using this as a distraction from dealing with the mess that tends to be my life. To tell the truth, I’m not exactly looking forward to going back, finding a new job and all that.”
“You’ll land on your feet, Miss Lane.”
“C’mon Rokk, how many times have I told you, it’s just plain Lois.”
And that was one of the last things she remembered before waking up in her own bed.
She didn’t think she’d hit the celebratory champagne that hard, so Rokk must have added something extra to hers that would ensure her secrecy. After all, how could she tell anyone about them if she didn’t have a clue where it was?
However, cool logic wasn’t going to dispel the twinge of betrayal she felt and soon her famous temper began to engage. The only thing stopping her from going into a swearing rant was the headache she had returned with.
Sitting up in bed, she squinted and cradled her head, which was pounding mercilessly. She supposed that she couldn’t blame them for being scared, but sometimes, not being trusted really hurt.
---
Now that she was back in Metropolis, there was only one person she wanted to see. So she quickly showered and dressed, racing over there.
“Chloe! Chloe, guess wha-what happened?”
Chloe had been sitting by the window in her apartment, an afghan wrapped around her shoulders. Her face was pale and gaunt, her hair hang limp and stringy around her face. It was quiet as a graveyard and her eyes looked liked ash had been smeared underneath on her skin.
Lois ran forward and grasped Chloe by the shoulders, squashing their bodies together in a hug that was more crush than comfort.
Chloe seemed in shock, her movements were stilted and slow. Lois swept the blonde’s hair from her face and hated seeing the pain etched there. She immediately vowed vengeance on her cousin’s behalf against the cretin that had done this to her best friend.
“Lois? What are you doing here? Where have you been?”
“That doesn’t matter now, Chloe. What happened here? Are you alright?” Chloe didn’t answer, just looked down at her hands and twisted the ring she wore on her middle finger.
Lois heard of Jimmy’s death and expressed her own regret and sadness, knowing it could never compare to her friend’s deep remorse. Chloe was clearly still carrying Jimmy’s memory around with her.
Lois tried to pry more details out of Chloe but her cousin kept changing the subject to her disappearance. In the end, whatever familial instincts she owned overrode her reporter’s gut. It would only distress Chloe further to discuss what was still bothering her and if she wanted to ignore the issue, she was allowed to. Lois hoped that maybe if she kept their conversation light, that Chloe would be more open to sharing her bad news later.
“I sorta had to stay covert ops for my latest story. The people I was helping were of the less-than-legal variety.”
“You weren’t kidnapped?”
“Well, the food and accommodations were certainly lower than four stars, but I stayed of my own free will to get the story.”
“Of course you did. God, Lois, did you ever think that people might be worried about you?”
“I didn’t have access to a phone?” Lois winced, hoping it would suffice.
“Weak excuse, even for you.” Chloe’s wan smile vanished. “I really needed you this week.”
“I’m so sorry. I had no idea.”
“I know. I guess I shouldn’t blame you. It’s just, after Clark-“
This was the first time Chloe had mentioned her best friend, to Lois’ surprise. Clark was usually the pillar of support during times of crisis and it made Lois uncomfortable that Chloe was alone.
She tried to keep the frustration out of her voice, “Speaking of, do you know where Clark is?” She almost told Chloe about the story she wanted to run by him but stopped, knowing Chloe would take it as a hint that Lois wanted to leave.
The problem was that a part of Lois did want to leave. Her cousin had suffered a great deal and she hated that she couldn’t do more to console her. She made her living off of words and it made her feel small and inadequate that all her fancy words couldn’t erase the grief from Chloe’s eyes.
“Or, never mind. I’m sure I’ll find that lunkhead later. Did I ever tell you what Jimmy said to me on your wedding day?”
As they talked into the night, swapping favourite memories of Jimmy, Lois could sense that there was something else. Something Chloe wouldn’t say. Or couldn’t say.
Whatever it was, it made Lois’s stomach clench like a little girl looking down from the high dive. She knew that she needed to escape before Chloe could share whatever information she held that caused her to look so lost and forlorn. Lois knew she wouldn’t like whatever it was.
“Thanks Lois, this meant a lot that you stayed.”
“That’s what family’s for.”
“Before you leave, there’s something else you should know.”
“Umm, I should check in at work, I’m sure I’ve got to clean out my desk since I’ve been gone so long.”
“Lois. This is important.” Chloe took a deep breath, steeling herself. “Clark’s gone. He’s left.”
Something about the hollow tone to Chloe’s voice and the defeated look on her face let Lois know that he hadn’t just left to visit his home-town. As the reality sunk in, the story she had frantically typed up in a haze that morning fluttered out of her hands and fell slowly to the floor. Suddenly, the by-line didn’t seem so important next to her beloved friend’s tears.
The fact that she couldn’t share the by-line with her partner was not at all a factor, she stubbornly told herself.
---
After only two weeks back on the job and it seemed to Lois like Clark hadn’t been the only person to abandon Metropolis. She finally admitted with a sigh that the Red and Blue Blur appeared to have vanished without a trace. It had been nice to think for awhile that her city had been special.
That she had been special.
The cynical side of her couldn’t blame the recent quiet. Because really, how many people were willing to admit that a blur had saved them? Of course, her whimsical side countered, a least there had been rumblings before. Now, to get anywhere near her old quota of sightings, she’d had to widen the margins to include more crackpots and a global search grid, which equalled more headaches than the story seemed worth most days.
---
Chloe frequently came over to Lois’ apartment in the last two months, but this time she was clearly worried. Lois may be a little self-absorbed, but when her cousin showed up at her doorstep with wringing hands and a concerned expression, even she could figure that one out.
To her credit, Chloe copped to her reasons for visiting once Lois questioned her. “Well, it’s just that you seem to have dropped that story you were so excited about. Then you’ve practically buried yourself with trivial column work. And you almost missed our dinner last week because you forgot.”
“Okay, so I need a new daily planner.”Lois sighed. “I’ve just been busy.” She didn’t think that bringing up the fact that the Daily Planet was now missing two staffers would help. “And I haven’t forgotten about the story. I just don’t think I can make it work.”
“Care to let me see it? I did used to know a thing or two about the newspaper business.” Chloe offered one of her smiles that were in short supply lately.
Halfway through the first paragraph and Chloe stopped to stare at Lois, shock written all over her face. “Wait, did they force you to do something against your will?”
“No! If anything, I was the one that had to get forceful. They were so concerned with playing by the rules when their political opponent seemed to have a very different idea of what ‘fighting fair’ meant. I just advised them on retaliation that fit under the same flexible definition of ‘fair’.”
Chloe looked a bit exasperated and when she finally said Lois’ name she dragged out the vowels to let Lois know that she disapproved. Her eyes widened as she continued to read but Lois was quick to stop whatever chain of thought had Chloe’s face so worried.
“Okay, I know what you’re thinking, and yes, without the details it will be hard to sell the story, let alone corroborate it, but-“
“Actually, I was thinking that these people sound like a terrorist cell! They kept you underground and all wore matching uniforms-“
“No, it was nothing like that. They were refugees and they were wearing those jumpsuits to blend in with the nearby factory workers.”
“Refugees from where?”
“They couldn’t tell me, but none of them could have been from South America, I would have picked up a trace of an accent. I think they were illegal immigrants from Europe who didn’t want to go home. Their home country was trying to force them to enlist or fight or something. That’s what I was trying to tell you, they were extreme pacifists, very non-violent.”
Chloe paused, something unreadable flitting across her face. She bent down to pick up the offending piece of paper. “Wait, this draft mentions aliens.”
“Yeah, that was my second choice, it sounded more dramatic. Do you think it’s too much little green men and not enough foreign residents?”
Lois was never great at reading people, she liked cold hard facts better, but it almost seemed like her cousin was laughing at herself for overreacting. “Just a bit, Lois.” Chloe smiled at her friend before she noticed a slight change in Lois’s composure. “What’s wrong? You’ve never questioned exaggerating a headline before. What happened to ‘anything to sell copy’?”
“I just think that these people deserve better than that, y’know?”
“Yeah, I think I do know. And I think they’d be proud of the work you’ve done.”
“Thanks Chloe. I must’ve re-written this a hundred times and I know I usually ask-people at the Daily Planet...”
“Lois, you can say his name. I promise I won’t cry again.”
Lois let out a tired sigh. “I just-I don’t want to make this any harder on you than it is.”
“I think Clark should know I’m not the only one who misses him.”
“Me? Miss Clark? Should I miss the terrible excuse for coffee that he used to make? Do you expect me to miss the way he’d track dirt all the way over to his desk? No way. And I certainly do not miss the way he would creak his desk chair while I tried to concentrate.”
“Well, he hasn’t responded to me yet, but I know he’s at least opened the emails I sent him. So, if you ever change your mind...”
“Thanks, Chloe. I’d keep that in mind if I weren’t so busy running this off to the printers.”
---
She had been thinking lately that it was really too bad that she had been away when Clark decided to just up leave. If only she’d been here when he’d decided to ‘abandon his humanity’ then maybe she would have been able to kick his brooding butt.
In her spare time she wrote about a dozen unfinished draft emails that all ended up in a folder she named ‘LETTERS TO AN IDIOT’. She didn’t even know if Clark would be able to check in with the rest of the world during his sabbatical from civilization or if he’d taken a vacation from technology as well as common sense.
Another factor was whether or not she wanted him to know that she missed him or was the least bit concerned about her former partner’s welfare. The way he had left certainly hadn’t earned him that bit of news, yet a part of her wanted him to know nonetheless.
So her notes ran the spectrum between trying to guilt-trip Clark to return (only for Chloe’s sake, of course) to angry ranting with a few trial emails that mixed the two.
She still dated as much (or as little) as she had before, but it was harder to turn down offers than it had been before. Without a reminder of the standard she measured every man up against sitting across from her desk every day, she seemed more inclined to forgive certain flaws or the absence of certain familiar traits. So she went on more second and third dates in Clark’s absence than she had in the previous year.
She tried not to think about this fact much.
After eight months without contact, she deleted the entire draft email folder to Clark before sending her shortest note yet to his email address, idling wondering if he’d see through her breezy attitude.
She didn’t so much ignore as completely skip over the messy goodbye that they’d never had.
---
“If it makes you feel any better, he hasn’t responded to anyone.”
“Hmm, what?” Lois said to Oliver as they pushed their way through the busy city bustle.
“Chloe told me about the email you sent and that you wished you hadn’t.”
“Well, it’s not really high on my regret-o-meter. Not unlike a certain friendship with an over-talkative blonde that I know.”
“Cut her some slack, she’s just worried about you.”
“Don’t you ever get tired of worrying? I hate that it seems like it’s all we do anymore.”
“I guess that’s what happens when the circle of your family and friends gets cut in half.”
“Great. Now I feel like an ass.” Lois complained.
“Well, you look like an ass.”
“Y’know, the person that once told you that you were funny played a cruel joke on you.”
“Yeah, but so far you’re the only one to suffer, so I don’t mind.”
“This is making me tired. Let’s grab some food before I have to hit you.”
“Only if you actually think about what I said.”
She was about to retort and keep up the charade but he suddenly went still and serious so that she couldn’t find the rhythm they had just shared.
“It’s okay to feel hurt.” He said quietly, like he was afraid she’d hear him.
“Hey, I’ve never been the person he trusted before so why should he start now, right?”
“Don’t be too hard on yourself, Lois.”
“The only person I’m hard on is the stranger who abandoned my cousin when she needed her friend the most.”
“So long as that’s it.”
“Scout’s honour.” Lies became easier once you practised them a couple hundred times a day.
He looked at her like he didn’t believe her but she cut him off before he could dig deep again in the angry mess that were her emotions concerning Clark. She really didn’t like seeing them spread wide on an autopsy table for everyone to comment on.
“ C’mon, you’re paying, rich boy.” Lois said as she grabbed his arm, steering him down the street.
(like what you see? watch this comm!)
Rating: PG13
Characters: Lois & Chloe deal with Clark’s disappearance
Spoilers: up to 8x22 “Doomsday”
Summary: She supposed that she couldn’t blame them for being scared, but sometimes, not being trusted really hurt.
Word Count: 2,800
AN: Could be seen as following my Garth & Lois one shot, where people are better liars than Clark so Lois doesn’t learn of his identity. She returns not knowing she was so far into the future.
“This is great Lois. With what you’ve dug up on Senator Carlton, we’ll be able to really bring some heat to the next negotiation. Get some rights back for our people.” Garth was smiling enthusiastically at her again, as if she’d just discovered gravity. It was a harmless crush, but still flattering for her.
It was nice to feel wanted for a change, instead of always pushed away.
“Remember not to back down; you’ve got just as much right to be here as he does.”
“Well, we shouldn’t keep you away from your job much longer.” Rokk said as he entered the make-shift workspace Lois and Garth had been using. He and Imra didn’t visit much and seemed annoyed that Garth spent so much of his time with Lois. If it had only been one of them, she would have suspected jealousy but since they both voiced objections, the only choice left meant that they disapproved of her.
She could tell by the way they cautiously chose their words around her, as if afraid to reveal too much of themselves to the outsider that can’t be trusted. She supposed that they must have learnt to be cautious after being persecuted the way they’d been.
Still, that was no excuse for rudeness.
“What job? If being dumped here wasn’t enough of a sign, I’m sure that missing the last few weeks of work is more than enough for Tess to fire me.”
“You know what we mean; you’ll have to go back to Metropolis soon.”
“Yeah, I guess I’ve kinda been using this as a distraction from dealing with the mess that tends to be my life. To tell the truth, I’m not exactly looking forward to going back, finding a new job and all that.”
“You’ll land on your feet, Miss Lane.”
“C’mon Rokk, how many times have I told you, it’s just plain Lois.”
And that was one of the last things she remembered before waking up in her own bed.
She didn’t think she’d hit the celebratory champagne that hard, so Rokk must have added something extra to hers that would ensure her secrecy. After all, how could she tell anyone about them if she didn’t have a clue where it was?
However, cool logic wasn’t going to dispel the twinge of betrayal she felt and soon her famous temper began to engage. The only thing stopping her from going into a swearing rant was the headache she had returned with.
Sitting up in bed, she squinted and cradled her head, which was pounding mercilessly. She supposed that she couldn’t blame them for being scared, but sometimes, not being trusted really hurt.
---
Now that she was back in Metropolis, there was only one person she wanted to see. So she quickly showered and dressed, racing over there.
“Chloe! Chloe, guess wha-what happened?”
Chloe had been sitting by the window in her apartment, an afghan wrapped around her shoulders. Her face was pale and gaunt, her hair hang limp and stringy around her face. It was quiet as a graveyard and her eyes looked liked ash had been smeared underneath on her skin.
Lois ran forward and grasped Chloe by the shoulders, squashing their bodies together in a hug that was more crush than comfort.
Chloe seemed in shock, her movements were stilted and slow. Lois swept the blonde’s hair from her face and hated seeing the pain etched there. She immediately vowed vengeance on her cousin’s behalf against the cretin that had done this to her best friend.
“Lois? What are you doing here? Where have you been?”
“That doesn’t matter now, Chloe. What happened here? Are you alright?” Chloe didn’t answer, just looked down at her hands and twisted the ring she wore on her middle finger.
Lois heard of Jimmy’s death and expressed her own regret and sadness, knowing it could never compare to her friend’s deep remorse. Chloe was clearly still carrying Jimmy’s memory around with her.
Lois tried to pry more details out of Chloe but her cousin kept changing the subject to her disappearance. In the end, whatever familial instincts she owned overrode her reporter’s gut. It would only distress Chloe further to discuss what was still bothering her and if she wanted to ignore the issue, she was allowed to. Lois hoped that maybe if she kept their conversation light, that Chloe would be more open to sharing her bad news later.
“I sorta had to stay covert ops for my latest story. The people I was helping were of the less-than-legal variety.”
“You weren’t kidnapped?”
“Well, the food and accommodations were certainly lower than four stars, but I stayed of my own free will to get the story.”
“Of course you did. God, Lois, did you ever think that people might be worried about you?”
“I didn’t have access to a phone?” Lois winced, hoping it would suffice.
“Weak excuse, even for you.” Chloe’s wan smile vanished. “I really needed you this week.”
“I’m so sorry. I had no idea.”
“I know. I guess I shouldn’t blame you. It’s just, after Clark-“
This was the first time Chloe had mentioned her best friend, to Lois’ surprise. Clark was usually the pillar of support during times of crisis and it made Lois uncomfortable that Chloe was alone.
She tried to keep the frustration out of her voice, “Speaking of, do you know where Clark is?” She almost told Chloe about the story she wanted to run by him but stopped, knowing Chloe would take it as a hint that Lois wanted to leave.
The problem was that a part of Lois did want to leave. Her cousin had suffered a great deal and she hated that she couldn’t do more to console her. She made her living off of words and it made her feel small and inadequate that all her fancy words couldn’t erase the grief from Chloe’s eyes.
“Or, never mind. I’m sure I’ll find that lunkhead later. Did I ever tell you what Jimmy said to me on your wedding day?”
As they talked into the night, swapping favourite memories of Jimmy, Lois could sense that there was something else. Something Chloe wouldn’t say. Or couldn’t say.
Whatever it was, it made Lois’s stomach clench like a little girl looking down from the high dive. She knew that she needed to escape before Chloe could share whatever information she held that caused her to look so lost and forlorn. Lois knew she wouldn’t like whatever it was.
“Thanks Lois, this meant a lot that you stayed.”
“That’s what family’s for.”
“Before you leave, there’s something else you should know.”
“Umm, I should check in at work, I’m sure I’ve got to clean out my desk since I’ve been gone so long.”
“Lois. This is important.” Chloe took a deep breath, steeling herself. “Clark’s gone. He’s left.”
Something about the hollow tone to Chloe’s voice and the defeated look on her face let Lois know that he hadn’t just left to visit his home-town. As the reality sunk in, the story she had frantically typed up in a haze that morning fluttered out of her hands and fell slowly to the floor. Suddenly, the by-line didn’t seem so important next to her beloved friend’s tears.
The fact that she couldn’t share the by-line with her partner was not at all a factor, she stubbornly told herself.
---
After only two weeks back on the job and it seemed to Lois like Clark hadn’t been the only person to abandon Metropolis. She finally admitted with a sigh that the Red and Blue Blur appeared to have vanished without a trace. It had been nice to think for awhile that her city had been special.
That she had been special.
The cynical side of her couldn’t blame the recent quiet. Because really, how many people were willing to admit that a blur had saved them? Of course, her whimsical side countered, a least there had been rumblings before. Now, to get anywhere near her old quota of sightings, she’d had to widen the margins to include more crackpots and a global search grid, which equalled more headaches than the story seemed worth most days.
---
Chloe frequently came over to Lois’ apartment in the last two months, but this time she was clearly worried. Lois may be a little self-absorbed, but when her cousin showed up at her doorstep with wringing hands and a concerned expression, even she could figure that one out.
To her credit, Chloe copped to her reasons for visiting once Lois questioned her. “Well, it’s just that you seem to have dropped that story you were so excited about. Then you’ve practically buried yourself with trivial column work. And you almost missed our dinner last week because you forgot.”
“Okay, so I need a new daily planner.”Lois sighed. “I’ve just been busy.” She didn’t think that bringing up the fact that the Daily Planet was now missing two staffers would help. “And I haven’t forgotten about the story. I just don’t think I can make it work.”
“Care to let me see it? I did used to know a thing or two about the newspaper business.” Chloe offered one of her smiles that were in short supply lately.
Halfway through the first paragraph and Chloe stopped to stare at Lois, shock written all over her face. “Wait, did they force you to do something against your will?”
“No! If anything, I was the one that had to get forceful. They were so concerned with playing by the rules when their political opponent seemed to have a very different idea of what ‘fighting fair’ meant. I just advised them on retaliation that fit under the same flexible definition of ‘fair’.”
Chloe looked a bit exasperated and when she finally said Lois’ name she dragged out the vowels to let Lois know that she disapproved. Her eyes widened as she continued to read but Lois was quick to stop whatever chain of thought had Chloe’s face so worried.
“Okay, I know what you’re thinking, and yes, without the details it will be hard to sell the story, let alone corroborate it, but-“
“Actually, I was thinking that these people sound like a terrorist cell! They kept you underground and all wore matching uniforms-“
“No, it was nothing like that. They were refugees and they were wearing those jumpsuits to blend in with the nearby factory workers.”
“Refugees from where?”
“They couldn’t tell me, but none of them could have been from South America, I would have picked up a trace of an accent. I think they were illegal immigrants from Europe who didn’t want to go home. Their home country was trying to force them to enlist or fight or something. That’s what I was trying to tell you, they were extreme pacifists, very non-violent.”
Chloe paused, something unreadable flitting across her face. She bent down to pick up the offending piece of paper. “Wait, this draft mentions aliens.”
“Yeah, that was my second choice, it sounded more dramatic. Do you think it’s too much little green men and not enough foreign residents?”
Lois was never great at reading people, she liked cold hard facts better, but it almost seemed like her cousin was laughing at herself for overreacting. “Just a bit, Lois.” Chloe smiled at her friend before she noticed a slight change in Lois’s composure. “What’s wrong? You’ve never questioned exaggerating a headline before. What happened to ‘anything to sell copy’?”
“I just think that these people deserve better than that, y’know?”
“Yeah, I think I do know. And I think they’d be proud of the work you’ve done.”
“Thanks Chloe. I must’ve re-written this a hundred times and I know I usually ask-people at the Daily Planet...”
“Lois, you can say his name. I promise I won’t cry again.”
Lois let out a tired sigh. “I just-I don’t want to make this any harder on you than it is.”
“I think Clark should know I’m not the only one who misses him.”
“Me? Miss Clark? Should I miss the terrible excuse for coffee that he used to make? Do you expect me to miss the way he’d track dirt all the way over to his desk? No way. And I certainly do not miss the way he would creak his desk chair while I tried to concentrate.”
“Well, he hasn’t responded to me yet, but I know he’s at least opened the emails I sent him. So, if you ever change your mind...”
“Thanks, Chloe. I’d keep that in mind if I weren’t so busy running this off to the printers.”
---
She had been thinking lately that it was really too bad that she had been away when Clark decided to just up leave. If only she’d been here when he’d decided to ‘abandon his humanity’ then maybe she would have been able to kick his brooding butt.
In her spare time she wrote about a dozen unfinished draft emails that all ended up in a folder she named ‘LETTERS TO AN IDIOT’. She didn’t even know if Clark would be able to check in with the rest of the world during his sabbatical from civilization or if he’d taken a vacation from technology as well as common sense.
Another factor was whether or not she wanted him to know that she missed him or was the least bit concerned about her former partner’s welfare. The way he had left certainly hadn’t earned him that bit of news, yet a part of her wanted him to know nonetheless.
So her notes ran the spectrum between trying to guilt-trip Clark to return (only for Chloe’s sake, of course) to angry ranting with a few trial emails that mixed the two.
She still dated as much (or as little) as she had before, but it was harder to turn down offers than it had been before. Without a reminder of the standard she measured every man up against sitting across from her desk every day, she seemed more inclined to forgive certain flaws or the absence of certain familiar traits. So she went on more second and third dates in Clark’s absence than she had in the previous year.
She tried not to think about this fact much.
After eight months without contact, she deleted the entire draft email folder to Clark before sending her shortest note yet to his email address, idling wondering if he’d see through her breezy attitude.
She didn’t so much ignore as completely skip over the messy goodbye that they’d never had.
---
“If it makes you feel any better, he hasn’t responded to anyone.”
“Hmm, what?” Lois said to Oliver as they pushed their way through the busy city bustle.
“Chloe told me about the email you sent and that you wished you hadn’t.”
“Well, it’s not really high on my regret-o-meter. Not unlike a certain friendship with an over-talkative blonde that I know.”
“Cut her some slack, she’s just worried about you.”
“Don’t you ever get tired of worrying? I hate that it seems like it’s all we do anymore.”
“I guess that’s what happens when the circle of your family and friends gets cut in half.”
“Great. Now I feel like an ass.” Lois complained.
“Well, you look like an ass.”
“Y’know, the person that once told you that you were funny played a cruel joke on you.”
“Yeah, but so far you’re the only one to suffer, so I don’t mind.”
“This is making me tired. Let’s grab some food before I have to hit you.”
“Only if you actually think about what I said.”
She was about to retort and keep up the charade but he suddenly went still and serious so that she couldn’t find the rhythm they had just shared.
“It’s okay to feel hurt.” He said quietly, like he was afraid she’d hear him.
“Hey, I’ve never been the person he trusted before so why should he start now, right?”
“Don’t be too hard on yourself, Lois.”
“The only person I’m hard on is the stranger who abandoned my cousin when she needed her friend the most.”
“So long as that’s it.”
“Scout’s honour.” Lies became easier once you practised them a couple hundred times a day.
He looked at her like he didn’t believe her but she cut him off before he could dig deep again in the angry mess that were her emotions concerning Clark. She really didn’t like seeing them spread wide on an autopsy table for everyone to comment on.
“ C’mon, you’re paying, rich boy.” Lois said as she grabbed his arm, steering him down the street.
(like what you see? watch this comm!)