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“Night, dad,” Chloe called from her room as her dad made his way to his own at the end of the hallway. She had been trying to finish her homework, but all she wanted to do was delve deeper into the files Lex had handed her. She had found some information on Lutessa, and while most of it made no sense, she guessed the girl’s birth certificate was right at least. She was only thirteen and she had been, assuming the documents weren’t false, in an all girls home until about six months ago.
While there was some comfort knowing the girl hadn’t been locked up at the mansion all her life, Chloe couldn’t help but feel bad she had been dropped off at an orphanage when her dad had more than enough money to take care of her. And they all agreed that the sooner they manage to find her, the better.
With a deep breath, Chloe shifted the notebook in front of her and did her best to focus back on physics. Only it didn’t last long, since she heard Lois’ not so quiet steps heading her way a moment later.
“We need to talk.” Lois stepped inside her room and shut the door, turning the lock just for extra security. Then she plopped belly-down on Chloe’s bed, arching her eyebrows at her cousin.
“You’re not breaking up with me, are you?” Chloe teased even though her stomach tightened. She had a pretty good idea what this was about.
“As if you could get rid of me that easily.” Lois smirked.
“Good to know,” Chloe said, getting up from her computer chair and walking over to sit down on the edge of the bed, too. Best if they could keep their voices low.
“Let’s start with: why the hell didn’t you tell me that Lionel Luthor tried to kill you?”
“Because it wasn’t so much about me as it was about Ollie,” Chloe told her, shrugging. “And I don’t know if he was trying to kill me or just trying to stop me from getting to the mansion.”
“Either way, he’s going down.” Lois’ voice was firm.
“That is the plan,” Chloe agreed. “But he’s way too much for us right now, Lo. Even with the boys helping. Once they are eighteen and they both have more control over their money and company, then we might be able to do something about Lionel.”
Lois wasn’t happy with that answer, but she didn’t push the issue. For now. “Now. About you and Romeo.”
Chloe paused at that and cocked her head. “What about it?”
“Are you two having sex?” she asked bluntly.
“No,” Chloe answered in a whisper. “Why?”
“Because it sure looked like that’s where things were going earlier today.” Lois gazed at her.
“Well, that’s the plan. Eventually,” Chloe added, holding her breath.
“And there’s nothing wrong with that if you’re ready.” She wasn’t about to tell her cousin not to do something that she herself did as often as possible. “But I kinda doubt that Uncle Gabe’s really talked to you very much about this kind of thing, so that means it’s my job.”
“Lois,” Chloe said, arching her eyebrows. “I have internet access.”
“It’s not the same,” she informed her.
“I know, but Ollie knows what he’s doing,” she said.
“Yeah, but you don’t,” Lois pointed out. “Right?”
“Right,” Chloe admitted, taking a deep breath. This had the potential of getting very awkward, very fast. But it could be useful advice.
“Okay, first thing you need to know is that you always practice safe sex.” Lois shifted, turning onto her side so she was facing Chloe. “Make him wear condoms, every single time. I don’t care if he’s as clean as a newborn infant.”
“I was planning on that,” Chloe said, nodding as she crossed her legs over the bed and looked down at her cousin.
“And you should probably go see a doctor.” Lois paused. “Or we can take a trip to Metropolis to a Planned Parenthood.”
“Yeah, I’ve been trying to figure out how to get on the pill without Dad finding out,” she admitted. “I guess Metropolis would be the safest bet.”
“I’ll call Monday morning and make an appointment.”
“And go with me?” Chloe asked, pursing her lips together.
“Of course.” Lois smiled. “Okay, so protection. We’re all over that. Onto the next most important thing.”
Chloe smiled too, relaxing. She was nervous about the whole sex thing, and even though she trusted Ollie completely, it was good to have Lois there. “Okay, what is it?”
“Never, ever fake anything. If you aren’t enjoying it, don’t pretend like you are. If you are enjoying it, let him know he’s doing it right.”
“Right,” Chloe said, taking a deep breath. “But the first time is pretty much impossible to enjoy anyway, right?”
“Not if he really knows what he’s doing. It won’t be all fun the first time though, no.”
“I just wanna get it over with,” Chloe admitted, shrugging. “I mean, I don’t wanna rush anything, but I can’t wait for it to be out of the way.”
“Believe me, I understand.” Lois smiled faintly. “Just...are you sure he’s the one? I mean this is kind of a big deal.”
Chloe paused at that and looked away, taking a deep breath and trying to decide how to talk to her cousin about this. “Yeah,” she started then fell silent. Part of her wanted to tell Lois how scared she was about how strongly she felt about Ollie, part of her was terrified that Lois was going to agree with her, that she had to break up with him before it got worse.
She studied her little cousin for a long moment. “For what it’s worth, he seems like a good guy.”
“He is a good guy,” Chloe said, looking over at Lois. He was also a multimillionaire who had a life in California instead of Kansas.
“But,” Lois prompted.
“But,” she whispered, taking a deep breath and glancing over at her cousin. “I don’t know what’s going to happen when he’s not stuck here anymore.”
Her expression softened. “Chloe, none of us know what’s going to happen in the future,” she said gently.
Chloe’s eyes teared up and she shrugged. “I know.”
She reached out and gave Chloe’s hand a squeeze. “Look at this way. He obviously cares about you. That night we were all whacked out of our minds and you jumped him? He didn’t take advantage of you. A lot of guys would have.”
“I know he does, Lo.” That wasn’t what she questioned. When Ollie told her he loved her, she believed him. “I guess I just wish his company was in Metropolis instead of Star City,” she admitted, smiling a little.
“So who’s to say he won’t open a branch here? Or that he won’t ask you to go to California with him when he goes?” Lois smiled at her faintly.
“Yeah, I can see that going over really well with dad,” Chloe said, smiling softly then taking a deep breath.
“After high school is over,” she amended, shrugging.
“That’s still a year gap,” she said quietly, taking a deep breath.
“True.” Lois studied her again and sighed softly. “So what is your heart telling you?”
“That it’s going to really suck if he’s not around for a whole year,” Chloe said, holding her breath.
“Has he said he’s leaving when he graduates?”
“We haven’t really talked about it,” she admitted, swallowing hard. She was terrified of finding out. “But why would he stay here? Around Lionel?”
“Because staying here would mean being around you,” Lois pointed out. “Maybe instead of guessing or torturing yourself, you should just ask him. Then you’ll have your answer.” Even if it wasn’t the one she wanted to hear.
“Maybe,” she agreed, but she really didn’t mean it. Because if he was planning on leaving, she was going to have to pull away from him as soon as possible so it wouldn’t hurt as much when he wasn’t around anymore. And she didn’t want to do that.
Lois gave her hand another squeeze and flopped onto her back so she was staring up at the ceiling. “You know, I’m surprised the General hasn’t shown up on our doorstep.”
“To come and demand that you go back to Metropolis?” Chloe asked, watching Lois for a moment then laying down next to her.
“And to fume about how I screwed things up at Met U.”
“Well, I’m glad he hasn’t. And I hope he stays away for a while, until you figure things out,” she said quietly. She knew how much the General could drag Lois down.
“Most likely the school just hasn’t contacted him yet,” she admitted, heaving another sigh. “But I’m sure they will eventually.”
“Hopefully by then, you can tell him how well you’re doing at Smallville High and explain that this is the best way to improve your GPA,” Chloe pointed out.
“Hopefully,” Lois agreed, turning her head to look at her cousin. She smiled and then looked back up at the ceiling once more. “I really appreciate you and Uncle Gabe letting me crash here.”
Pursing her lips together, Chloe reached for Lois’ hand and squeezed it. “I’m really glad you’re here. And selfishly, I hope you stay longer than just one semester.”
Her smile brightened at that. “Well who knows? Might do me some good to have extra classes under my belt before going back to college.”
“I completely agree,” Chloe said, grinning softly. “Besides, I’m sure I wouldn’t be the only one who’d like having you around.”
At that, Lois arched an eyebrow and glanced at her again.
Chloe propped herself up on her elbow and turned to look at Lois. “What’s going on with you and Lex?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Sure you don’t,” she squinted, watching her cousin closely.
Lois shrugged. “We have some stuff in common. That’s all. And aside from the fact that he’s a millionaire and I’m like...a fifty-aire...”
“So, it couldn’t turn into something else?” Chloe asked, cocking her head. She knew to tread carefully when it came to Lois and boys, but she was curious.
“I don’t think he’s interested in me like that.” Lois looked up at the ceiling again, yawning. “I’m just new and different so he’s curious. It’ll wear off.” It always did.
“I’ve never really seen Lex putting so much effort in impressing someone before, for what’s worth,” Chloe said, watching her cousin for a moment before laying down on her back too.
“I guess we’ll see what happens.”
Chloe smiled at that and took a deep breath, relaxing as she tried not to think about Ollie leaving, or the homework she still had to do. “I guess we will.”