Chapter Text
Chloe Sullivan was exceptionally proud of her detective skills.
She knew she was a talented reporter, so when Clark started disappearing mysteriously and fabricating excuses to her face, she felt a distinct prick of offense. Not only was Clark acting strange, but he was displaying classic signs of a total behavioral shift: smiling randomly at nothing, speaking to Lana without a single stutter, and suddenly having zero time for The Torch. That last one stung.
When she asked Clark what his plans were for the weekend and he smoothly answered that he was "meeting Pete to play video games," Chloe chose to stay silent about the fact that Pete was actually visiting his family in Metropolis. Armed with her trusty digital camera and a (un)healthy dose of righteous curiosity, she headed over to the Kent farm, fully prepared to stake out the place all day. Luckily, less than an hour into her enterprise, she spotted Clark sneaking out the back door.
Eureka!
But in the single second it took for her to lift her camera and adjust the zoom lens, Clark vanished. He was completely gone, leaving no trace behind.
That Monday at school, Clark walked down the halls looking like an unbothered, happy puppy, which only frustrated Chloe even more.
Her brain absolutely refused to let it go. She started keeping a mental folder, filing away every strange detail throughout the week, certain as she was of the fact that it would all make sense sooner rather than later.
Chloe could be patient.
The breakthrough finally came at the Talon one evening. It was one of those rare occasions when Clark actually joined them to grab a coffee. Lex happened to be there, too. The second the bald billionaire stepped through the door, the atmosphere at their table completely shifted. It was subtle, but to Chloe’s hyper-observant eyes, it was like a neon sign flashing in the dark.
Lex walked over, pretending to greet the whole group, but his eyes locked onto Clark with an expression that was entirely too familiar. And Clark? His happy puppy energy from Monday was back in full force. He leaned back in his chair, a relaxed, easy smile crossing his face that he usually only reserved for... well, nobody. He didn’t look nervous around the older man. He looked completely at home.
"Afternoon, everyone," Lex said, his voice smooth as silk. He stopped right next to Clark's chair, resting his hand casually on its back.
"Hey, Lex," Clark replied. His voice dropped an octave, a low, rumblesome tone Chloe had literally never heard him use before.
Then, it happened.
Lex reached into his inside jacket pocket to pull out his wallet to pay for their round of drinks (which the billionare did often). As he lifted his hand, the light caught a flash of metal on his right pinky finger. It was a tiny, distinct silver band—sleek, modern, and clearly custom-made. At that exact moment, Clark leaned forward to rest his elbows on the table, causing the collar of his shirt to gape open. A glint of silver caught Chloe’s eye. Sliding out from beneath the fabric was a thin, simple chain, and dangling right at the end of it was an identical silver ring.
Chloe’s eyes darted from the ring around Clark’s neck straight back to Lex’s pinky finger. Same unique engraving. Same brushed finish. Clark was wearing Lex's matching ring right over his heartbeat.
Suddenly, the pieces in Chloe’s brain flew together at warp speed. The random smiling. The sudden lack of stuttering around Lana. The disappearing acts. The video game excuse with Pete. It wasn't a secret rebellion against Jonathan Kent. Clark wasn't sneaking out to meet a confidential source; he was sneaking out to the Luthor mansion.
Just to confirm her theory, Chloe casually reached across the table to grab a napkin, deliberately bumping Clark’s arm. The hot coffee sloshed over the rim, heading straight for Clark's lap. Before Clark could even react, Lex’s hand shot down, grabbing a napkin from the dispenser and blotting Clark's jeans with a practiced, domestic familiarity that you absolutely do not have with your "best friend."
"Careful, Clark," Lex murmured, his thumb brushing just a little too high up Clark's thigh before he caught himself and pulled his hand back, clearing his throat. "Don't want to ruin the clothes."
"Thanks, Lex," Clark said, his cheeks flushing a telltale shade of crimson as he looked up through his eyelashes, quickly tucking the silver ring back beneath his collar.
Chloe sat back in her chair, taking a slow, deliberate sip of her macchiato. Her inner investigative reporter refused to let her show defeat. She had cracked the code. The Wall of Weird was going to have to wait, because the biggest scoop in Smallville was sitting right across from her, pretending he was just a regular farm boy while secretly dating the richest bachelor in Kansas.
"So, Lex," Chloe said, a sharp, knowing smirk spreading across her face as both men snapped their attention back to her. "Play any good video games this weekend?"
Clark instantly choked on his coffee. Lex just raised a smooth, elegant eyebrow, a tinytwist of amusement at the corner of his lips.
Case closed.
The next afternoon, Clark was waiting for her. He sat at her desk in The Torch office, anxiously tapping a pencil against a stack of layout sheets. When the door finally swung open and Chloe walked in, Clark offered her a half-hearted bag of jellybeans. Chloe didn't even blink.
"Hey, Chloe," Clark started, rubbing the back of his neck. "Look, about yesterday at the Talon, I’m really sorry I had to bolt so fast, but my dad needed help with the—"
"Tractor? The fence? The south pasture?" Chloe cut in smoothly. She crossed her arms, fixing him with her best interrogator glare. "Save the farm-boy monologue, Clark. The tractor is fine, and we both know it."
Clark blinked, his innocent puppy-dog expression faltering. "What? Chloe, I don't—"
"Cut it, Kent."
He fell silent. The sheer authority in her voice didn't leave him much of a choice.
Chloe leaned forward, resting her elbows on her desk. "You know, I pride myself on uncovering the hidden truths of this town. But I have to admit, you really threw me for a loop this week."
Clark swallowed hard, his eyes darting toward the door as if calculating an escape route. "Chloe, if this is about the video games with Pete, I can explain—"
"Pete is in Metropolis, Clark. He's been there since Friday," Chloe said flatly. She reached across the desk and gently, but deliberately, hooked her finger into the collar of Clark's flannel shirt, tugging it just enough to reveal the thin silver chain. "And unless Pete started gifting you custom-engraved silver jewelry that perfectly matches the pinky ring of a certain billionaire, I think your alibi just officially crumbled."
Clark froze. The blood completely drained from his face. His hand flew up to cover thering, his knuckles turning white. "Chloe," he breathed, his voice cracking. "It’s... it’s not what you think."
"Oh, really?" Chloe raised an eyebrow. "Because what I think is that you’ve been sneaking out to the Luthor estate. I think you're the reason Lex Luthor has suddenly taken a keen interest in small-town high school football. And I think that little blush you gave him at the Talon yesterday wasn't because you were worried about spilling coffee on your jeans."
Clark opened his mouth, closed it, and looked down at his lap. When he finally looked back up, the defensive wall was gone. He just looked terrified—not of her, but of what this meant. "Are you... are you going to put it on the Wall?" he asked, his voice barely a whisper.
Chloe’s expression softened instantly. The sharp journalist melted away, leaving just the girl who cared about her best friend more than any scoop. "Clark, give me some credit," she said softly, reaching out to place her hand over his trembling ones. "I might be obsessed with the truth, but I'm not a monster. Your private life isn't a headline for The Torch. I’m just your best friend. It kind of hurt that you felt like you had to lie to me."
Clark let out a massive breath, his shoulders sagging with immense relief. "I'm sorry. I wanted to tell you. It's just... it's Lex. If my dad found out, he’d lose his mind. If the town found out... I just wanted to protect it. To protect him."
"Lex Luthor doesn't exactly strike me as someone who needs a bodyguard, Clark, but I get it," Chloe said, a tiny, teasing smile returning to her face. "Though, I do have to ask... Lex? Seriously? The man drives a sports car that costs more than my entire future college tuition, and you're a guy who wears plaid on plaid."
Clark’s cheeks flushed pink again, but a genuine smile tugged at his lips. He reached beneath his shirt, pulling the ring out to look at it. "He's different when it's just us, Chloe. He really is."
"He better be," Chloe warned, pointing a threatening finger at him. "Because billionaire or not, if he breaks your heart, I will find enough dirt on LuthorCorp to sink his entire empire. Got it?"
Clark laughed, the heavy tension completely vanishing from the room. "Got it. Thanks, Chloe."
"Don't thank me yet," she smirked, pulling a fresh stack of articles toward her. "You still owe me three hours of proofreading to make up for all the time you skipped out on the paper. Chop chop, farm boy. Your secret's safe, but your weekends are officially mine again."