fic: a nudge in the right direction
Title: A Nudge in the Right Direction
Fandom: Smallville
Pairing/Characters: Clark/Oliver, Chloe
Word Count: 2385
Rating: PG
Warnings: slash
Disclaimer: all characters belong the CW/DC Comics
Summary: Stiletto is gone, and it seems so that the Blur-Etto fans are gone too, but Chloe and Clark find out that they’ve latched on to something new.
Author's Notes: For my fanfic100 table, prompt 96 "writer's choice"; thanks to my beta, boltgirl426, who came also came up with the title!
“All right, Chloe, what’s the emergency?”
Clark was met with sparkling green eyes though and a huge smile. “Clark! You’re here!” Chloe exclaimed happily.
“Yes,” he said, smiling warmly. “You called me, remember?” Honestly, Clark didn’t even care about the reason anymore. Whatever it was, it had to be good, because it put the smile back on his best friend’s face, one that seemed to have disappeared as of late.
“I wanted to show you something,” Chloe told him.
“Is everything okay?” Clark had to ask.
“Yeah, yeah, everything’s fine,” Chloe said, with a wave of her hand, “Sorry I scared you … I was just enthusiastic, I guess.”
Chuckling, Clark said, “It’s fine, Chlo.”
“I wasn’t interrupting anything important, was I?” Chloe questioned.
“Nope, you’re good,” Clark assured her. “What’s up?”
“Well,” Chloe replied, “Do you remember when I told you about Blur-Etto?”
“Oh, yeah, people on the internet thought the Blur and Stiletto should get together,” Clark recalled, rolling his eyes. “How could I forget?” At least Lois had given up parading as ‘Stiletto’ … she got into enough trouble with her day job; the last thing Clark needed was for her to take up a nighttime one, which put her in even more danger!
“Well, now that Stiletto is gone, so are the fans,” Chloe continued, oblivious to his thoughts.
“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” Clark pointed out. “It sounds good to me.”
“Well, then you’re going to be disappointed,” she said.
“What do you mean?” Clark asked, frowning.
“I was searching the internet and I stumbled upon this website,” Chloe said gleefully, “It seems that the fans have just found something new to latch on to.” Observing Clark’s puzzled expression, she went on, “Do you remember how the Blur helped out Green Arrow last week?”
“Yeah,” Clark said slowly. He had assisted Oliver in taking down a gang when it became too much for the Green Arrow to handle alone. “So what?”
“That piece of news went around quickly,” Chloe said, smirking, “And voila!” She moved to the side and Clark looked at the computer screen, which, up till now, she had been covering. His eyes immediately widened at what was there.
“Blur-Arrow,” Clark read, stunned, “Love comes in red, blue and green? People think that my alter ego and Oliver’s alter ego should get together?”
“Yes!” Chloe said, way too happy about the situation, in his opinion. “Isn’t it great?”
“How is it great?” Clark demanded, “They do know we’re both men, right?”
Chloe shrugged. “They obviously don’t care. Besides, I, for one, think it would be very hot. I guess I’m not alone.”
“Chloe!” Clark exclaimed.
His best friend just stared back at him, looking completely unapologetic. “What? It would.”
“You’re insane,” Clark said, shaking his head, “This whole thing is insane!” Him and Oliver? Sure, he could acknowledge that the blond was good-looking but there was nothing more to it than that. A guy could think that another guy was handsome without it being weird, right? Then again, he remembered how good it felt rolling around with Oliver in Russia, even if they had been “fighting” … it had taken all his self control for him to focus on the fight and not react to Ollie’s body on his. No, don’t go there. It doesn’t mean anything. You’re just missing Lana and you’re confused about Lois. The website is just putting ideas into your head.
Yes, that was it. With his already jumbled emotions, the last thing he needed was to add in questions about his sexuality. Besides, his relationship with Oliver already had enough problems; the last thing he needed was to add an additional reason to be awkward around the other man.
And why does having a strained relationship with Oliver bug you so much? It didn’t … not really. Lies. You know you hate it when you fight with him. Have you ever wondered why you can’t stand it when he’s mad at you? Well, Oliver was a friend. Clark didn’t like fighting with any of his friends; it was perfectly normal to be upset. Not like this. You put up with so much more from Oliver Queen than you ever did with anyone else. Face it; your relationship with Oliver wasn’t normal to begin with and it’s certainly not now. Even a bunch of bloggers, who don’t even know you two other than one sighting of your alter egos, can pick it up. Why can’t you?
But it couldn’t be … could it?
Little did Clark know that while he was lost in thought, his best friend was observing him closely.
Chloe had suspected for a while that Clark’s feelings for Ollie were more than friendly. It was just how his voice would change when he talked about Oliver, how he acted when they were fighting … there was something there. She understood Clark was confused about Lois and Lana but despite whatever feelings he thought he had, Chloe noticed that he never fought for them. He didn’t try to find a cure for Lana nor did he make attempts to fix things with Lois.
But Oliver … Oliver was different. Judging from Clark’s expressions, Chloe figured that he might be realizing that too. And now this was her chance to find out for sure whether or not she was right.
“So, Clark,” she said slyly, bringing him back to reality, “Are you seeing that maybe they’re not so off after all?”
Clark looked at her, dazed for a second, but within seconds, shook his head, having gathered his composure. “No,” he said firmly. “They’re crazy.”
Denial, thy name is Clark Kent. “Are you sure? Because a second ago, you looked like you were considering it.”
“Chloe, I’m straight,” Clark stated, clearly exasperated.
Before she could say anything, a third voice interrupted, “Well, I thought that was a fact. Unless there’s something that we want to share with the class?”
Both Chloe and Clark spun toward the doors, mouths dropping open at the sight. Because somehow, Oliver Queen had shown up and neither of them had even noticed. Almost instinctively, Chloe and Clark moved in front of the computer, shielding it from Ollie’s view.
“So,” Oliver said, realizing that neither of them was going to say anything. “I seemed to have dropped in on a very interesting conversation.” He grinned, eyes darting between both of them.
Chloe recovered first and forced a laugh. “No, nothing interesting about it.”
“Yeah, what she said,” Clark chipped in.
“Oh, that’s not suspicious at all,” Oliver joked. “You two are horrible liars. If there’s nothing, why did you move to cover that computer so quickly?”
“That’s crazy,” Chloe insisted, trying her best to keep her voice steady even though her heart was racing. Sure, she could tease Clark about the website but she had no idea how Ollie would react. No, Ollie wasn’t homophobic and she knew that, but she wouldn’t blame him if he was a little uncomfortable with the whole idea. The last thing she wanted to do was strain Clark and Oliver’s relationship further.
Smirking, Oliver made his way toward them until he was only inches away. “Move.”
Chloe and Clark exchanged looks, the expressions on both their faces resigned. They knew that there was no way around this one. Hoping that this would turn out okay, they both stepped out of the way.
Ollie smiled smugly and went to the computer. They watched with bated breath as he read what was on the screen and … laughed? That was not what they were expecting.
“What’s so funny?” Chloe wanted to know.
“This website,” Oliver answered, grinning. “It’s way too amusing.”
“What they’re saying … it doesn’t make you uncomfortable?” Clark found the courage to ask.
“No, why would it?” Oliver responded, shrugging. “These people seem to like me … and honestly, with the mixed reception of Green Arrow around here, I’ll take all the fans I can get.”
Chloe couldn’t hold back a laugh at that comment. Even Clark cracked a smile.
“Besides,” Oliver added cheekily, “They’re right … we would be very hot together.”
Clark’s jaw dropped and Chloe had to bit her lip to stop the grin that threatened to take over.
“And to think, they don’t know that I’m the one in the costume and the most they’ve seen of you is a blur,” Ollie added, “Because that one time they did see you, it wasn’t you but me. If they believe we would be perfect together with just that, they’d go crazy if they actually knew what we looked like!”
It took all her self-control to refrain from giggling at how red Clark’s face was turning.
“You sound like you’ve thought about it,” Clark said, his voice shaky, the forced smile on his face a sign that he was trying to make a joke but failing miserably.
“Of course,” Ollie said smoothly. Chloe wondered privately if anything fazed him. “Then again, I doubt there’s one person in the world who’s laid eyes on you and not thought about it.”
Seeing Clark swallow hard and Ollie slowly but surely closing the distance between them, Chloe decided that she should give the boys their privacy. It was tough, especially since she really wanted to see how this played out, but right now, she felt a little bit like a voyeur. Besides, she could always press Clark for details later.
With that thought in mind, Chloe exited quietly, figuring that neither man would notice.
She would’ve been right.
Even with his superhearing, Clark didn’t notice his best friend’s absence, too focused on the blond in front of him.
Ollie was barely a few inches away and Clark suddenly had trouble breathing.
“Ever since I first met you, it’s all I could think about,” Oliver said softly.
“You … I … I just thought,” Clark stammered.
“Thought what, Clark?” Oliver urged.
He ducked his head. “I didn’t even think you liked me very much lately.”
“Oh, Clark,” Oliver sighed. “Honestly, there were times when I wished I didn’t like you, but I think it’s impossible. There’s just something about you … man, I sound like a lovesick teenager. God knows I spent most of the past year jealous of Lois and Lana for having your attention.”
At those words, Clark met his eyes again. “Jealous?” he croaked.
“Jealous,” Oliver confirmed. “I couldn’t stand it that you were falling for Lois and I wanted to be happy for you but damn it, it sucked. So I pushed you away instead … or at least I tried.”
“Well, stop,” Clark said firmly, finally regaining some sense of control. “I hate it when we fight.”
“Me too,” Oliver admitted, the vulnerability in his brown eyes causing Clark to melt. “Let’s not do it anymore.”
“Well, considering it’s us, I don’t know how long that will last, but I’m willing to try,” Clark joked, trying to lighten the mood and it must’ve worked because Ollie smiled. He loved that smile and he missed the days when Oliver used to smile more often. Clark beamed back at him.
“You know, when you smile like that, I want to kiss you.” Oliver’s words shocked them both and the blond clearly hadn’t meant to say it aloud, considering the way his eyes widened right after the words were out.
“Uh, wow,” was all Clark could get out.
“Your fault, Kent,” Oliver said, trying to backtrack, “Don’t worry; I know you’d punch me if I tried.”
“Not likely,” Clark found himself saying, surprising Oliver.
He watched Oliver bite his lower lip. “Don’t tease me, boyscout.” It had been a while since Oliver had called him that and Clark actually missed the nickname.
“Never,” Clark promised. All his previous denials were going out the window and he didn’t care. All he could focus on was the beautiful blond in front of him and how much he wanted him. “Would you punch me if I kissed you right now?”
“God help me,” Oliver muttered. Then, before Clark could blink, Oliver closed the remaining distance between them and kissed him. It started out hesitant and gentle but didn’t stay that way for long. Clark’s hands settled on Oliver’s hips, while Ollie’s arms wrapped themselves around Clark’s neck, pulling him closer and damn, he had never been kissed like this before.
They separated reluctantly, Oliver’s need for air pulling them apart.
“We have … a lot to talk about,” Oliver said, trying to catch his breath.
“Yeah,” Clark agreed. One kiss wouldn’t be able to change everything and he knew it, but it was definitely a start.
“Maybe we can go get dinner and talk?” Oliver suggested.
“Oliver Queen, are you asking me out on a date?” Clark asked.
“If I was, would you say yes?” Oliver questioned, eyes sparkling.
“I already am,” Clark replied. They exchanged smiles.
“Everything okay here?” a third voice cut in and Clark watched as Chloe walked back in. He felt slightly guilty when he realized he never even noticed her leave.
“Everything’s perfect,” Oliver assured her. “We were just about to leave?” He glanced at Clark to make sure that it was okay.
“Yeah,” Clark confirmed. He gave Chloe a quick hug. “I’ll see you later, okay?”
“Definitely,” she said, hugging him back. Whispering so only he could hear, she added, “I want details later, Kent.”
“Deal,” he agreed. Turning back to Oliver, he said, “Ready?”
“Always,” Oliver responded. They left together and Clark was happy, feeling for the first time in a while, he had made the right decision.
Back in the building, Chloe was smirking. Oh yeah, something had definitely happened between her boys.
Turning to her computer, where the website was still open, she hit the log in button. Typing in her username and her password, she hit enter. She may have been exaggerating a little when she told Clark she had “found” the website.
Welcome Javaqueen, moderator flashed on the screen.
Going to the boards, she almost laughed when she saw one person’s comment. “They could totally be hooking up when they aren’t saving lives!”
Hitting reply, she typed, Yeah, who knows? They could be on a date as we speak!
Relaxing into her chair, Chloe sighed happily. Oh yeah, she was good.
Fandom: Smallville
Pairing/Characters: Clark/Oliver, Chloe
Word Count: 2385
Rating: PG
Warnings: slash
Disclaimer: all characters belong the CW/DC Comics
Summary: Stiletto is gone, and it seems so that the Blur-Etto fans are gone too, but Chloe and Clark find out that they’ve latched on to something new.
Author's Notes: For my fanfic100 table, prompt 96 "writer's choice"; thanks to my beta, boltgirl426, who came also came up with the title!
“All right, Chloe, what’s the emergency?”
Clark was met with sparkling green eyes though and a huge smile. “Clark! You’re here!” Chloe exclaimed happily.
“Yes,” he said, smiling warmly. “You called me, remember?” Honestly, Clark didn’t even care about the reason anymore. Whatever it was, it had to be good, because it put the smile back on his best friend’s face, one that seemed to have disappeared as of late.
“I wanted to show you something,” Chloe told him.
“Is everything okay?” Clark had to ask.
“Yeah, yeah, everything’s fine,” Chloe said, with a wave of her hand, “Sorry I scared you … I was just enthusiastic, I guess.”
Chuckling, Clark said, “It’s fine, Chlo.”
“I wasn’t interrupting anything important, was I?” Chloe questioned.
“Nope, you’re good,” Clark assured her. “What’s up?”
“Well,” Chloe replied, “Do you remember when I told you about Blur-Etto?”
“Oh, yeah, people on the internet thought the Blur and Stiletto should get together,” Clark recalled, rolling his eyes. “How could I forget?” At least Lois had given up parading as ‘Stiletto’ … she got into enough trouble with her day job; the last thing Clark needed was for her to take up a nighttime one, which put her in even more danger!
“Well, now that Stiletto is gone, so are the fans,” Chloe continued, oblivious to his thoughts.
“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” Clark pointed out. “It sounds good to me.”
“Well, then you’re going to be disappointed,” she said.
“What do you mean?” Clark asked, frowning.
“I was searching the internet and I stumbled upon this website,” Chloe said gleefully, “It seems that the fans have just found something new to latch on to.” Observing Clark’s puzzled expression, she went on, “Do you remember how the Blur helped out Green Arrow last week?”
“Yeah,” Clark said slowly. He had assisted Oliver in taking down a gang when it became too much for the Green Arrow to handle alone. “So what?”
“That piece of news went around quickly,” Chloe said, smirking, “And voila!” She moved to the side and Clark looked at the computer screen, which, up till now, she had been covering. His eyes immediately widened at what was there.
“Blur-Arrow,” Clark read, stunned, “Love comes in red, blue and green? People think that my alter ego and Oliver’s alter ego should get together?”
“Yes!” Chloe said, way too happy about the situation, in his opinion. “Isn’t it great?”
“How is it great?” Clark demanded, “They do know we’re both men, right?”
Chloe shrugged. “They obviously don’t care. Besides, I, for one, think it would be very hot. I guess I’m not alone.”
“Chloe!” Clark exclaimed.
His best friend just stared back at him, looking completely unapologetic. “What? It would.”
“You’re insane,” Clark said, shaking his head, “This whole thing is insane!” Him and Oliver? Sure, he could acknowledge that the blond was good-looking but there was nothing more to it than that. A guy could think that another guy was handsome without it being weird, right? Then again, he remembered how good it felt rolling around with Oliver in Russia, even if they had been “fighting” … it had taken all his self control for him to focus on the fight and not react to Ollie’s body on his. No, don’t go there. It doesn’t mean anything. You’re just missing Lana and you’re confused about Lois. The website is just putting ideas into your head.
Yes, that was it. With his already jumbled emotions, the last thing he needed was to add in questions about his sexuality. Besides, his relationship with Oliver already had enough problems; the last thing he needed was to add an additional reason to be awkward around the other man.
And why does having a strained relationship with Oliver bug you so much? It didn’t … not really. Lies. You know you hate it when you fight with him. Have you ever wondered why you can’t stand it when he’s mad at you? Well, Oliver was a friend. Clark didn’t like fighting with any of his friends; it was perfectly normal to be upset. Not like this. You put up with so much more from Oliver Queen than you ever did with anyone else. Face it; your relationship with Oliver wasn’t normal to begin with and it’s certainly not now. Even a bunch of bloggers, who don’t even know you two other than one sighting of your alter egos, can pick it up. Why can’t you?
But it couldn’t be … could it?
Little did Clark know that while he was lost in thought, his best friend was observing him closely.
Chloe had suspected for a while that Clark’s feelings for Ollie were more than friendly. It was just how his voice would change when he talked about Oliver, how he acted when they were fighting … there was something there. She understood Clark was confused about Lois and Lana but despite whatever feelings he thought he had, Chloe noticed that he never fought for them. He didn’t try to find a cure for Lana nor did he make attempts to fix things with Lois.
But Oliver … Oliver was different. Judging from Clark’s expressions, Chloe figured that he might be realizing that too. And now this was her chance to find out for sure whether or not she was right.
“So, Clark,” she said slyly, bringing him back to reality, “Are you seeing that maybe they’re not so off after all?”
Clark looked at her, dazed for a second, but within seconds, shook his head, having gathered his composure. “No,” he said firmly. “They’re crazy.”
Denial, thy name is Clark Kent. “Are you sure? Because a second ago, you looked like you were considering it.”
“Chloe, I’m straight,” Clark stated, clearly exasperated.
Before she could say anything, a third voice interrupted, “Well, I thought that was a fact. Unless there’s something that we want to share with the class?”
Both Chloe and Clark spun toward the doors, mouths dropping open at the sight. Because somehow, Oliver Queen had shown up and neither of them had even noticed. Almost instinctively, Chloe and Clark moved in front of the computer, shielding it from Ollie’s view.
“So,” Oliver said, realizing that neither of them was going to say anything. “I seemed to have dropped in on a very interesting conversation.” He grinned, eyes darting between both of them.
Chloe recovered first and forced a laugh. “No, nothing interesting about it.”
“Yeah, what she said,” Clark chipped in.
“Oh, that’s not suspicious at all,” Oliver joked. “You two are horrible liars. If there’s nothing, why did you move to cover that computer so quickly?”
“That’s crazy,” Chloe insisted, trying her best to keep her voice steady even though her heart was racing. Sure, she could tease Clark about the website but she had no idea how Ollie would react. No, Ollie wasn’t homophobic and she knew that, but she wouldn’t blame him if he was a little uncomfortable with the whole idea. The last thing she wanted to do was strain Clark and Oliver’s relationship further.
Smirking, Oliver made his way toward them until he was only inches away. “Move.”
Chloe and Clark exchanged looks, the expressions on both their faces resigned. They knew that there was no way around this one. Hoping that this would turn out okay, they both stepped out of the way.
Ollie smiled smugly and went to the computer. They watched with bated breath as he read what was on the screen and … laughed? That was not what they were expecting.
“What’s so funny?” Chloe wanted to know.
“This website,” Oliver answered, grinning. “It’s way too amusing.”
“What they’re saying … it doesn’t make you uncomfortable?” Clark found the courage to ask.
“No, why would it?” Oliver responded, shrugging. “These people seem to like me … and honestly, with the mixed reception of Green Arrow around here, I’ll take all the fans I can get.”
Chloe couldn’t hold back a laugh at that comment. Even Clark cracked a smile.
“Besides,” Oliver added cheekily, “They’re right … we would be very hot together.”
Clark’s jaw dropped and Chloe had to bit her lip to stop the grin that threatened to take over.
“And to think, they don’t know that I’m the one in the costume and the most they’ve seen of you is a blur,” Ollie added, “Because that one time they did see you, it wasn’t you but me. If they believe we would be perfect together with just that, they’d go crazy if they actually knew what we looked like!”
It took all her self-control to refrain from giggling at how red Clark’s face was turning.
“You sound like you’ve thought about it,” Clark said, his voice shaky, the forced smile on his face a sign that he was trying to make a joke but failing miserably.
“Of course,” Ollie said smoothly. Chloe wondered privately if anything fazed him. “Then again, I doubt there’s one person in the world who’s laid eyes on you and not thought about it.”
Seeing Clark swallow hard and Ollie slowly but surely closing the distance between them, Chloe decided that she should give the boys their privacy. It was tough, especially since she really wanted to see how this played out, but right now, she felt a little bit like a voyeur. Besides, she could always press Clark for details later.
With that thought in mind, Chloe exited quietly, figuring that neither man would notice.
She would’ve been right.
Even with his superhearing, Clark didn’t notice his best friend’s absence, too focused on the blond in front of him.
Ollie was barely a few inches away and Clark suddenly had trouble breathing.
“Ever since I first met you, it’s all I could think about,” Oliver said softly.
“You … I … I just thought,” Clark stammered.
“Thought what, Clark?” Oliver urged.
He ducked his head. “I didn’t even think you liked me very much lately.”
“Oh, Clark,” Oliver sighed. “Honestly, there were times when I wished I didn’t like you, but I think it’s impossible. There’s just something about you … man, I sound like a lovesick teenager. God knows I spent most of the past year jealous of Lois and Lana for having your attention.”
At those words, Clark met his eyes again. “Jealous?” he croaked.
“Jealous,” Oliver confirmed. “I couldn’t stand it that you were falling for Lois and I wanted to be happy for you but damn it, it sucked. So I pushed you away instead … or at least I tried.”
“Well, stop,” Clark said firmly, finally regaining some sense of control. “I hate it when we fight.”
“Me too,” Oliver admitted, the vulnerability in his brown eyes causing Clark to melt. “Let’s not do it anymore.”
“Well, considering it’s us, I don’t know how long that will last, but I’m willing to try,” Clark joked, trying to lighten the mood and it must’ve worked because Ollie smiled. He loved that smile and he missed the days when Oliver used to smile more often. Clark beamed back at him.
“You know, when you smile like that, I want to kiss you.” Oliver’s words shocked them both and the blond clearly hadn’t meant to say it aloud, considering the way his eyes widened right after the words were out.
“Uh, wow,” was all Clark could get out.
“Your fault, Kent,” Oliver said, trying to backtrack, “Don’t worry; I know you’d punch me if I tried.”
“Not likely,” Clark found himself saying, surprising Oliver.
He watched Oliver bite his lower lip. “Don’t tease me, boyscout.” It had been a while since Oliver had called him that and Clark actually missed the nickname.
“Never,” Clark promised. All his previous denials were going out the window and he didn’t care. All he could focus on was the beautiful blond in front of him and how much he wanted him. “Would you punch me if I kissed you right now?”
“God help me,” Oliver muttered. Then, before Clark could blink, Oliver closed the remaining distance between them and kissed him. It started out hesitant and gentle but didn’t stay that way for long. Clark’s hands settled on Oliver’s hips, while Ollie’s arms wrapped themselves around Clark’s neck, pulling him closer and damn, he had never been kissed like this before.
They separated reluctantly, Oliver’s need for air pulling them apart.
“We have … a lot to talk about,” Oliver said, trying to catch his breath.
“Yeah,” Clark agreed. One kiss wouldn’t be able to change everything and he knew it, but it was definitely a start.
“Maybe we can go get dinner and talk?” Oliver suggested.
“Oliver Queen, are you asking me out on a date?” Clark asked.
“If I was, would you say yes?” Oliver questioned, eyes sparkling.
“I already am,” Clark replied. They exchanged smiles.
“Everything okay here?” a third voice cut in and Clark watched as Chloe walked back in. He felt slightly guilty when he realized he never even noticed her leave.
“Everything’s perfect,” Oliver assured her. “We were just about to leave?” He glanced at Clark to make sure that it was okay.
“Yeah,” Clark confirmed. He gave Chloe a quick hug. “I’ll see you later, okay?”
“Definitely,” she said, hugging him back. Whispering so only he could hear, she added, “I want details later, Kent.”
“Deal,” he agreed. Turning back to Oliver, he said, “Ready?”
“Always,” Oliver responded. They left together and Clark was happy, feeling for the first time in a while, he had made the right decision.
Back in the building, Chloe was smirking. Oh yeah, something had definitely happened between her boys.
Turning to her computer, where the website was still open, she hit the log in button. Typing in her username and her password, she hit enter. She may have been exaggerating a little when she told Clark she had “found” the website.
Welcome Javaqueen, moderator flashed on the screen.
Going to the boards, she almost laughed when she saw one person’s comment. “They could totally be hooking up when they aren’t saving lives!”
Hitting reply, she typed, Yeah, who knows? They could be on a date as we speak!
Relaxing into her chair, Chloe sighed happily. Oh yeah, she was good.