birthday fic :)

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This is a birthday fic for
chaotic4life, whose birthday was on the 26th! I hope she likes it! :D

Story: Love in Costumes
Pairing/Characters: Clark/Oliver, Chloe/Bruce
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: don’t own anything
Warning: slash
Spoilers: none
Summary: future fic; The League has a Halloween party and certain people gang up to play matchmaker for our favorite duo.

“We have to have a party!” Bart Allen, also known as the Flash, exclaimed to the people around him. “It’s Halloween dude!”

“We’re in costume 365,” Bruce Wayne pointed out. “And I think you’re a little too old to go trick or treating.”

The Justice League was having one of their meetings but after all the business was taken care of, Bart had been quick to bring up Halloween, the approaching holiday, declaring that all of them should throw a party.

Clark Kent watched his fellow teammates argue back and forth and couldn’t help the smile from spreading across his face.

Never did he imagine his life to turn out this way. At the age of 20, he didn’t even know what to do with his life. But everything had worked in his favor. Now, he had a successful career as a Daily Planet reporter and used his abilities to save people as “Superman”, a name given by Lois due to the fact the crest of his biological family looked like an “S”.

Why he had picked journalism, he didn’t know. He had an interest when he was younger and one day, he just realized that he wanted to make something of his life. Despite how much he loved the farm, he couldn’t stay there forever. So he applied to Metropolis University and had been accepted.

There, he got into the school paper and found himself loving the thrill of reporting and exposing stories. He finally understood why Chloe had so much passion for it. Graduating at the top of his class, he didn’t go into the workforce immediately. Clark knew that, by defeating the Zoners once and for all, he couldn’t avoid his destiny any longer.

That’s how he spent the next two years of his life in training and learned a lot about his heritage and his abilities. Upon his return, he found the world a much different place but at the same time, not so different.

Chloe was working at the Gotham Tribune, leaving Metropolis when she was offered an editor’s position right after college. She was now assistant editor-in-chief, having quite a successful career, and was engaged in a serious relationship with Bruce Wayne, whom she met when she interviewed him for an article. Clark had been surprised at the relationship but he saw them together and they just worked.

Even more stunning, he learned that Lois Lane, the same woman he used to fight with on a daily basis, was now the star reporter of The Daily Planet. He was happy though that the people he cared most about were safe and doing well in their lives.

He had managed to swing a job at the Planet and Perry White, now editor-in-chief, had partnered him up with none other than Lois, who was less than pleased about being saddled with a partner.

After a rough couple of weeks, Lois finally accepted him and they got along just fine. But he wasn’t just satisfied with being Clark Kent, reporter. Through his training, he had learned his true destiny . . . to save the world. Jor-El claimed that if left to their own devices, the evils within the society would take over and the humans were going to destroy themselves just like Krypton. Clark was sent to prevent that from happening.

He had a costume ready too, based off a traditional Kryptonian outfit. But there was no mask and Clark liked it that way. Hiding his face from the world was not an option for him. Besides, he hoped that the bright colors of his uniform would distract people from examining his face.

There were differences between Superman and Clark Kent. As Clark, his eyes were green but melded into a sharp blue the minute he put on the costume. His features were sharper and as Clark, he was hidden behind a pair of glasses and loose suits that hid his muscular frame.

Shortly after he took up the streets, he was invited to join The Justice League by none other than Batman, who turned out to be his best friend’s boyfriend, the billionaire Bruce Wayne. At first, he was skeptical but he was persuaded to come to one meeting and all his doubts were removed.

He learned that Oliver’s team had joined with Bruce’s to create an even bigger group of heroes. J’onn J’onzz, better known as the Martian Manhunter being within that group raised his trust even further.

The reunion with his old friends was great and Clark found it easy to fit in with the group. His closest companion was Bruce. Superman and Batman were partners while Clark considered Bruce to be an extremely good friend.

In fact, when Bruce recently asked Chloe to marry him, he requested Clark as his best man, which Clark had happily accepted.

Two years had passed since he had first joined the League and they had been the best years of his life. Of course, there was a lot of danger, most of it from his once friend turned arch nemesis Lex Luthor, but he managed.

“Kal-El,” Bruce’s deep voice broke him from his thoughts. “What do you think of this whole party idea?”

Clark bit his lip. “I think it’s a good idea.” Bruce raised an eyebrow. “I mean, not just celebrating Halloween . . . we all work so much that we hardly just get to spend time together. This party would be a nice way to interact with each other and just have a good time.”

“Halloween is a dangerous time,” Bruce pointed out. “People tend to go crazy.”

“Then we’ll keep the monitors on,” Clark said. “Trust me, nothing will happen.”

“Yeah, Bruce,” chimed in the amused voice of Oliver Queen. “I think we should have a little fun.”

Clark turned toward him, blue eyes meeting brown. Oliver smiled and winked at him, causing his heart to flutter.

He couldn’t help it . . . over their time in the League, Oliver and Clark had gotten closer. Somewhere along the way, Clark had fallen in love with Oliver. How was it his fault? Oliver was gorgeous, funny, intelligent and had a heart of gold. The blonde had played such a huge part in Clark becoming who he was today and had been the first person to encourage Clark to use his powers on a more global scale.

Too bad the blonde would never look at him as anything but a friend. He was certain that Oliver Queen was undeniably straight and did not have any feelings for Clark that weren’t platonic.

It was depressing because every time they got together, Clark fell in love with Oliver all over again. The fact that his feelings would forever remain unrequited hurt.

“All right,” Bruce was saying, “It seems that the popular consensus is that we want a party. Then a party we shall have. However, to compromise, it shall not be on the 31st itself but on the 30th. That way, we can have a good time but we can manage to do our duties on Halloween.”

This pleased everyone and Clark tried to focus back on the conversation, as now actual plans were being made.

“We are having costumes aren’t we?” Clark asked deviously.

Bruce shot him a warning look but he continued. “It’s a Halloween party Bruce. We have to dress up!”

This stirred conversation and he heard murmurs of agreement.

“Fine,” Bruce said, rolling his eyes. “We’ll have costumes.” He had already lost the attention of the rest of the League members, who were all chatting excitedly about the party with one another.

“You’re bringing Chloe aren’t you?” Clark asked Bruce softly.

“I think she’d be furious if I didn’t,” Bruce said pointedly. They both chuckled, imagining Chloe’s outraged expression at being left out from the superhero party. She still did work for the League on the side, despite the fact she wasn’t as active as she previously had been. As far as everyone was concerned, she was as much a member as any one of them.

In fact, if she wasn’t so busy with her job, she would probably sit in on all the meetings. Bruce informed him that when he was still off on his training and the League was fairly new, she used to do just that.

“So have you guys picked a wedding date?” Clark questioned. Bruce shook his head and the two began to talk about the plans.

He was so focused on the conversation that he didn’t notice a pair of chocolate brown eyes watching him from across the table.

God, he’s so beautiful. Oliver stared longingly at Clark, wishing that the brunette would look his way once again. But he didn’t; he was engaged in a conversation with Bruce and Oliver realized that he was probably the last thing on Clark’s mind.

Which was sad, because he was madly in love with Clark. He had had feelings for Clark Kent since they met in Smallville. Back then he was dating Lois but he could not deny his growing attraction for her best friend.

They parted ways and didn’t contact one another unless it was an emergency. Slowly, he pushed Clark Kent out of his mind but the brunette never lost his place in Oliver’s heart. One day, he called the farm and found that Clark just wasn’t there. Mrs. Kent said that he was traveling. Two years passed and he didn’t hear a word.

Nobody would speak on his whereabouts, not Chloe or Mrs. Kent. He assumed Lois didn’t even know what was going on and truth be told, he didn’t really want to contact her anyway, given the way their relationship ended.

Imagine his surprise when one day, a new hero showed up on the streets of Metropolis, dressed in bright blue and red, possessing all the abilities that he remembered Clark having. At first, he was amused with Clark’s chosen costume and slightly worried that the younger man was going around without a mask.

Then he really looked at Clark’s uniform and found that he couldn’t really think. The tight material clung to every muscle and left little to the imagination, driving Oliver wild. Clark’s introduction to the League was the first time he saw it up close and he constantly had to remind himself to breathe during the meeting.

Clark’s debut as Superman and his entrance into the League brought them closer than they were before. Batman was Superman’s partner and best friend but Clark and Oliver got extremely close over the years.

They rebuilt their friendship to the point where it was stronger than before and Oliver felt all the old feelings he had rising again. This time, it was much stronger.

However, he never mentioned his affections to Clark, in fear of ruining their friendship. Oliver was used to pursuing people when he wanted them but Clark was different. He had never loved someone, man or woman, the way he loved Clark. And he didn’t want to scare him away.

Oliver would rather have Clark as a friend than not have him in his life at all. He was positive Clark was straight and just didn’t want to be rejected the brunette or make him uncomfortable in any way.

More often than not, he found himself jealous of Lois, who got to spend lots of time with both Superman and Clark. Most of the time, he wondered if there was something going on between them. He vowed not to make Clark feel bad if the brunette did really care about Lois, no matter how much it would destroy him to see them together.

But for now, he wasn’t going to think about Lois. He could spend some quality time staring at Clark and that was always fun.

“Oliver?” Hal’s gentle voice broke through his thoughts and he turned to his friend. The Green Lantern was another one of Oliver’s close friends in the League.

“You okay?” Hal asked. “You seem spaced out there.”

“I’m fine,” Oliver assured him. Quickly changing the topic, he asked, “Decided on a costume for the party?”

Hal laughed and the duo began discussing possible costumes. But in the back of Oliver’s mind, he couldn’t help but wonder what Clark would be dressed as.

Dinah Lance gazed at the scene and had to resist smacking her head against the table. Boys are stupid.

“It’s frustrating, isn’t it?” a voice came from her right. She turned and met the bright blue eyes of Diana Prince.

“Why are they so dumb?” Dinah asked of her friend. “It’s so obvious they love one another.” The pair they were talking about was none other than Kal-El and Oliver.

Dinah had actually dated Oliver for a brief period of time but they broke up, mutually deciding it just wasn’t working. But a blind person could see how much Oliver and Kal-El loved one another.

“I don’t know what to do with them,” Dinah continued, sighing. “They’re making themselves miserable by not acting on their feelings.”

Diana smiled. “Superman, for all his abilities, is dense with it comes to love. As is Oliver. If they are to ever get together, I doubt that they will do it on their own.”

Dinah smiled knowingly. “You’re saying that other people need to do it for them.”

“Up for playing matchmaker?” Diana asked mischievously.

She stole a glance at both Oliver and Kal-El, who were sneaking peaks at each other when one of them wasn’t looking.

Could they be any more obvious? Turning back to Diana, she nodded. “Count me in.”

“We’re going to need help,” Diana stated.

Dinah smiled, an idea striking her. “And I know just where we’re going to get it.”

“What are you two beautiful ladies up to?” They looked up to see Bart standing there, a flirty smile on his face.

“We’re plotting,” Diana told him.

“Ooh, I love plots,” Bart said, ducking down. “What are we plotting?”

Diana gave her a questioning look and Dinah shrugged. “We’re trying to get Kal-El and Oliver together.”

Bart’s eyes widened. “That’s great!” Of course, his enthusiasm caught the attention of everyone in the room and suddenly, all eyes were staring at them.

“I just told Bart that I was going to make double fudge brownies for the party,” Dinah lied quickly.

Everyone chuckled, understanding Bart’s eating habits. “Oh Bart,” Kal-El laughed, shaking his head. “Do you always think with your stomach?”

“Oh come on there,” Oliver chipped in. “Be nice. I remember a certain farm boy always getting excited about his mother’s pie . . .”

Kal-El blushed, meeting Oliver’s eyes, and Oliver just smirked. Dinah could feel the chemistry between them.

“They really need to get together,” Bart commented, making sure this time to keep his voice low.

“Yeah, they do,” Dinah agreed, staring at the oblivious couple.

“We should get them together during the Halloween party,” Bart suggested. Seeing Dinah and Diana’s surprised expressions, he added, “I can come up with ideas sometimes too!”

Both women just smiled in response.

The meeting ended quickly and people left. Diana and Dinah left together, already having an intended destination in mind.

Diana flew them both so that within minutes, they were in Gotham, more specifically Wayne Manor.

They were ushered in by Alfred and fortunately, the person they were looking for was in.

Chloe Sullivan greeted them in the living room. “Hi Diana, Dinah.”

“Hey Chloe,” the women chimed together.

“So what’s up?” Chloe asked.

“Okay, so at this meeting, we decided to have a Halloween party,” Dinah explained.

“And Bruce allowed this?” Chloe interrupted, amused.

“Yes, he did,” Diana answered. “He was sorely outnumbered but he did manage to make it the day before Halloween.”

Chloe giggled. “Sounds like Bruce.” Diana and Dinah laughed. Chloe knew her fiancé better than anyone.

“But what does this party have to do with me?” Chloe questioned.

“We want to set up Oliver and Kal-El,” Dinah confessed. “And we need your help.”

Chloe’s expression turned to one of excitement. “Really? Well, it’s about time! Those two idiots have been dancing around one another far too long. So what do you got?”

Pleased at Chloe’s gung ho attitude, they quickly filled her in. The three women then continued planning on what they were going to do.

One thing was for certain: the boys would not know what hit them.

The day of the Halloween party came quickly. At first, he had no idea what he was going to wear. But Chloe had barged in one day and decided she was going to help him with his costume. And nobody could argue with Chloe Sullivan once she got an idea in her head.

Apparently, she already had a costume in mind for him. When she pulled it out, he was shocked and a little bit embarrassed.

“I can’t wear that,” he protested but one glare from her silenced him. He may be Superman but Chloe was scary.

He wondered what Oliver would be dressed as. The only reason he was excited for this party was so he could spend time with Oliver.

Now if I could only tell him how I feel.

Not too far away, Oliver was preparing for the party as well. Dinah had showed up a few days prior and practically forced a costume into his hands.

“Dinah,” he told her. “I already have a costume.”

“Oliver,” Dinah said, “If I have to see that Robin Hood costume again, I will burn it . . . with you inside.”

Extremely worried for his own safety, he accepted the costume she gave. She may be his ex but she was still as controlling as ever.

He did have to admit she had good taste in costumes. After he got dressed, he took a look in the mirror and he was quite impressed with his reflection.

Maybe Clark will be too. The thought of stirring up anything in the brunette other than just friendship thrilled him to no end.

Just tell him how you feel. What have you got to lose? Well, his pride, his dignity and one of the closest friends he’d ever had.

He did have a lot to lose but he had everything to gain.

I should tell him. Then he imagined Clark’s horrified expression and his rejection. Then again, maybe not.

Diana and Dinah were the first ones to get to the party. They were helping set up and they wanted to make sure everything was in order for their plan. Diana had chosen to come as the Goddess Athena while Dinah was dressed as a witch.

Chloe and Bruce showed up next, Chloe dressed as a princess and Bruce as Prince Charming. Diana almost burst out into laughter seeing the stoic Batman dressed like someone out of a storybook.

“Bruce wanted to come as James Bond,” Chloe explained. “But I didn’t want him and Clark looking like twins.”

“How did you get him into that?” Dinah wanted to know.

“Well,” Chloe said, with a wink, “It wasn’t too hard. I did some . . . convincing.” Dinah was definitely impressed by the blonde. The girl had a lot of spunk.

“So are we ready?” Chloe asked.

“Definitely ready,” Dinah confirmed. They exchanged smiles, all of them very eager for what was to come.

People began trickling in slowly. But the ones that they were waiting for hadn’t arrived just yet.

Oliver made his way into the party, and was pleased to see it was already in full swing. Everyone seemed to be having a good time. His eyes immediately sought out Clark but was disappointed to find that the brunette had not arrived yet.

Pushing away his disappointment, he made his way to get a drink.

”Looking good,” a voice said from his right. He turned to see Bart grinning at him. “We were worried you’d show up as Robin Hood yet again.”

“Ha ha, very funny,” Oliver said sarcastically. Bart was dressed as the Sonic the Hedgehog, even going to the extent of wearing a red wig.

“Dinah picked that costume, didn’t she?” Bart asked. Oliver grumbled, not responding, but his silence was answer enough.

Oliver was pleased with his costume. He was dressed like a playboy, Hugh Hefner style. From the black pajama pants, to the silky white shirt topped off with a velvet smoky red jacket.

“Looks like my amigo has finally arrived,” Bart commented and Oliver’s eyes darted to the entrance. What he saw had his heart rate speeding up and he had to remind himself to breathe.

Clark looked utterly delicious. He looked like a mob boss, dressed in a black pinstripe double breasted suit. Wearing a black shirt and a white tie that matched the white pinstripes, he was a dream. A hat rested on top of his head, completing the outfit. Oliver couldn’t stop staring at the gorgeous brunette and silently thanked whoever got him into that costume.

Seeing that Oliver was no longer paying attention to him, Bart snickered.

“See you later dude.” Bart wandered off and Oliver shook his head, snapping back to reality. He may have aged and called himself “Flash” instead of “Impulse” but in other ways, Bart hadn’t changed at all. And he found himself thankful for it.

But he was quickly taken up with Clark, who was moving gracefully across the room. The brunette was looking around and his eyes were wandering around the room. Finally, they fell on Oliver and a smile spread across his handsome face.

Quickly changing directions, he made his way toward Oliver.

“Hey Oliver,” Clark greeted him.

He’s speaking to you, idiot. Form a sentence already.

“Hi Clark,” Oliver replied, somehow managing to produce words. “How are you?”

Great, now that I’ve seen you. But Clark didn’t say that. The blonde looked sexier than ever and Clark was having a hard time fighting temptation.

“I’m good,” Clark told him. “And yourself?”

“Not too bad,” Oliver replied. “People seem to be enjoying themselves.”

He nodded. Thinking of a conversation topic, he asked, “Did you see that Bruce came as Prince Charming?”

Oliver laughed. He has such a wonderful laugh. “Oh yeah, Chloe did a good job there.”

Clark grinned and they fell into easy conversation, but both were silently wishing for the courage to do more than just talk.

Unbeknownst to them, a few pairs of eyes were watching their conversation.

“I can’t believe you three,” Bruce said, shaking his head. He had been finally clued in on the plan and was a little embarrassed he didn’t catch on earlier.

“Four,” Bart corrected, “I helped too.”

“And you’re sure this is going to work?” Bruce demanded. Clark and Oliver were two of his closest friends and he did not want to see either one of them get hurt.

“Trust me,” Chloe assured him. “This will go off fine.” He shot a glance at the unsuspecting duo, who were happily chatting.

“I hope you’re right.”

An hour and a half into the party, Dinah decided it was time. Both boys had been eyeing one another all night and it wouldn’t take much. They both looked extremely handsome and she knew if she got them alone, they would be all over each other.

Dinah smirked. It’s time.

Clark was having a good time mingling but always kept on eye on Oliver. He was in the process of finding the blonde when Diana came up to him.

“Hey Kal-El,” she said, “Could you do me a favor?”

“Of course,” he said.

“I put more food in one of the rooms, if you go down the hallways, it’s the 3rd door on the right,” Diana stated, “Could you get it for me?”

“Most definitely,” Clark responded and headed off on his task, missing her satisfied smile completely.

He found the room and opened the door, surprised to see Oliver sitting on the large bed that resided in the center of the room.

“Clark!” Oliver said frantically, “Don’t let the door-” A resounding slam cut him off.

“Shut,” Oliver finished.

Clark frowned and turned back. Testing the doorknob, he was shocked to find it was locked.

“Diana told me to come here and bring out more food,” Clark said.

“Funny,” Oliver said wryly. “Dinah asked me to do the same thing. I entered and the door closed and I found out it was locked.”

“That’s no problem,” Clark said, “I can get us out.”

“I wouldn’t do that, Kal-El,” a voice came from the other side.

“Diana?” Clark said, recognizing the voice instantly. “What’s going on?”

“There is a load of kryptonite in front of the door,” Diana stated, “I suggest you not slam the door open . . .”

Clark tried to x-ray the door but he found it was made of lead and he couldn’t, for the life of him, see if they were lying or not.

“What’s your plan?” Oliver yelled.

“We’re just giving you some alone time.” That was Dinah. “Trust me, you two need it. If you’re smart you’ll make use of it. Enjoy!”

“Hey, let us out!” Clark yelled. But there was no response.

Clark paused. “They couldn’t have really put kryptonite on the other side, could they?”

“Please, Clark,” Oliver pleaded, seeing where his thoughts were headed. “Don’t try . . . I don’t want you to find out the hard way that they’re not lying.”

Clark was taken aback when he saw the pure concern in Oliver’s eyes. He loved Oliver’s eyes- they were the creamiest shade of brown. And having those eyes focused on him sent shivers down his back.

“What do you think they’re hoping to gain from this?” Clark asked, trying to remain cool about the situation.

“No idea,” Oliver sighed, not moving from the bed. “They locked us in a room with a bed and some food . . .” Oliver’s voice trailed off, his eyes focused on something on the dresser. A bottle rested there and Clark blushed when he read the label.

“I think,” Oliver stated, “I have a vague idea what they had in mind.”

Oh God, they figured out my feelings and now they’re trying to set me up with Oliver. “I can’t believe them,” Clark said softly. “What were they thinking?”

Oliver looked disappointed. “Yeah . . . they’re pretty dumb, huh?” But Clark didn’t see his depressed expression, too lost in his world.

“How did they know?” Clark whispered.

Now Oliver was puzzled. “Know what?” Hope was filling his heart at Clark’s words.

“Know what?” he repeated, needing answers desperately. Could it be?

Not realizing what he was saying, Clark said, “My feelings . . . I didn’t think I was that obvious.”

Clark’s eyes widened when he just realized he said that aloud. “Oh God . . .” Frantic green eyes met Oliver’s brown ones. “Oliver . . . I’m so sorry . . . I didn’t mean . . .”

Oliver was beaming. Standing up, he closed the distance between them and wrapped his arms around Clark’s back.

“Ssshhh,” Oliver said, placing a finger on his lips, “I’m kind of hoping you did mean that.”

Clark’s heart fluttered. “Ollie?”

“I’m hoping you meant that,” Oliver said, “Because that would mean that you return my feelings.”

“You . . . you have feelings for me?” Clark asked breathlessly.

“I love you, Clark Kent,” Oliver said passionately, “I’ve been in love with you for years.”

“I love you too,” Clark said, his heart ready to burst with happiness. “I love you so much.” Leaning forward, Oliver captured Clark’s lips with his own.

The kiss increased in passion rapidly and only when air became an issue did they part.

“I can’t believe we wasted so much time,” Clark mused.

“Well that ends tonight,” Oliver said. “No more wasted time.” His eyes shone. “What do you say we make use of that bed?”

“I’d definitely be interested in that,” Clark confirmed and met Oliver’s lips once again.

And then there was no talking for the rest of the night.

Outside, where the rest of the party was gathered, Diana smiled. She had tuned in her hearing to the couple and almost blushed when she heard the noises from within the bedroom.

She turned to her companions, who were gazing at her expectedly.

“Mission accomplished,” Diana said happily.

“So they’re . . .” Dinah started.

“Very much together,” Diana confirmed. “And making use of that bed.”

Dinah and Chloe were pleased.

“Nice work ladies,” Dinah said. She lifted her champagne flute.

“Indeed,” Chloe agreed, lifting her glass. “To Halloween and matchmaking.”

“I’ll drink to that,” Diana said, laughing. Clicking glasses, they went back to their conversation.

While in one of the bedrooms, two men were professing their love for one another in very physical ways.

Indeed, it was a Happy Halloween for everyone.