Don't own anything Smallville related...Including our favorite bald billionaire.

"Oh!" She had just been about to take a sip of her coffee when Clark suddenly appeared beside her. She hated when he did that, Chloe thought to herself as he gave her an apologetic look. Though, it was hard to stay mad long when he looked at her like that.

"I'm sorry, Chloe," he said, "But, I need to talk to you. Alone," he added pointedly, glancing around the crowded coffee shop. It was Friday afternoon, and the Talon seemed the place to be today. Knowing that whatever Clark had to say would probably keep her busy the rest of the day, she grabbed her coffee and half eaten muffin, then followed him outside.

"Clark, wait up," she shouted, as she practically had to jog to keep up with his retreating form. She always seemed to be trailing behind him, and Clark seemed to be forgetting more and more often that he was the only freakishly speedy person around. If she lost one drop of coffee because of him…

He came to a stop a few feet from the Talon, away from all the civilians. As Chloe finally reached him, she was actually able to get a good look at him. His clothes were a wreck. There was a large rip along the right shoulder of his red flannel shirt, and his pants had scorch marks on them. But, this was nothing compared to the rest of him. His eyes were like saucers, and the expression plastered on his face could only be described as foreboding.

"What's wrong?" Chloe asked, instinctively reaching out for his arm, whether to support him or herself, she wasn't sure. "Is it Lana, or Pete?" she nearly shouted, frustrated and angry that she should have to guess when Clark obviously knew what was going on. A million possibilities ran through her mind, from meteor freak of the week, to Mrs. Kent burning her hand while taking bread out of the oven.

He slowly shook his head no, his eyes focusing on hers. It took him a moment to say anything. But, when he did, she wished he hadn't. "Lex knows."

That's all he said. 'Lex knows.' Yet it held more meaning to her than it would almost anyone else. There was only one thing Lex Luthor could have found out about that would cause Clark to look like that. He somehow found out that Clark wasn't all he appeared to be. And, that was a very, very bad thing. Yet, a small ray of hope dotted Chloe's horizon as she wondered how much he knew. Just as she was about to ask, Clark beat her to it.

"I went to the mansion to talk to Lex," he started, his voice low, almost husky. "I had a hunch that Mason would go after him when his dad got fired from the plant this morning." Mason Kenley was indeed this week's freak. An odd, but otherwise all right guy, he had been living somewhere out west, but moved back in with his dad about a month ago when he found out he had cancer.

He became infected when he decided to take a dip in the meteor infested lake behind his house. Chloe and Clark had started keeping an eye on him the past few days, ever since he exhibited signs of telekinesis. Clark had decided to give him the benefit of the doubt given his condition, so he wasn't really taking a hands on approach with this one. Of course, Chloe had a sinking suspicion that it had more to do with him wanting to spend time with Lana, rather than any real remorse over Mason's situation. But, apparently his mental state was not as stable as they had presumed if he was already using his powers to get back at Lex.

"When I got there," Clark continued, "he was going off on Lex. Yelling at him that he had no right to take away his dad's job, that it would be the only thing his dad had left once he was gone. Lex was trying to calm him down, telling him he would get his dad's job back for him, that he wasn't involved in him getting fired in the first place. But, Mason wasn't listening."

Chloe waited for Clark to go on, but it seemed like he needed a push. "So…" she prodded, barely able to keep her anxiety under control, "What happened then?"

"Well," he seemed to be trying to find the right words, "I don't know. It happened so fast. Mason had started to lift Lex into the air with his powers. I went and knocked him into a wall. But, Lex was still rising. Mason sent me hurling through the room. Then, he tried to crush me with Lex's desk, but I was able to get out of the way. I'm not sure if Lex noticed how fast I was, but it's a possibility."

"Oh, Clark…" Chloe shook her head. They had worked so hard to keep his secret from everyone, especially Lex. But, if all he was aware of was a little super speed, then she really couldn't see all the harm in that.

"There's more," of course, she thought to herself, "After I got out of the way, he dropped Lex to the ground. He fell from pretty high up, and I thought he was knocked out cold. Me and Mason went at it for a few minutes. And, I might have had to use a few laser shots to keep some things from crushing me to a pulp, although he did manage to land one of Lex's bookcases on me." Clark winced. "He had so many things levitated in the room it was hard to keep track of everything," he explained when he noticed the look on her face.

Chloe would feel sympathy if she hadn't known that he healed instantly. She was still waiting to hear what the big deal was. If he kept this up, she would go straight to the source, and ask Lex what in the hell had happened herself. Clark was so detail oriented sometimes. Just get to the point already.

"I don't know how he managed to control all those things for as long as he did, but when he went to send a stack of pokers at me from the fireplace, he must have not been paying enough attention because one of the pokers went straight through his chest," this time it was Chloe's turn to wince.

"Yeah," Clark sympathized, shaking his head, "it was pretty gruesome. There was nothing I could do to help him. He died after a few moments. And, it was in those few moments that I realized Lex was watching us from where he had landed. He didn't say anything, but the way he was looking at me… Chloe he knows. I know he does."

Chloe tried to think quickly, which luckily for them both she could do quite easily. So, Lex knew. Well, as adamant as he had been about the whole 'I have to know Clark's secret, and I won't rest until I do' bit, it was amazing that he hadn't already discovered it on his own. He is intelligent, no doubt about that.

Maybe this wouldn't be such a bad thing. She knew he was supposed to be the devil incarnate, yet she couldn't help but wonder, if given the chance, if he could change. Maybe being 'in' on the secret would be the second chance he needed, a way to redeem himself. Of course, this was all merely wishful thinking on her part. But, for the life of her she couldn't come up with a suitable alternative to the current situation, so she was gonna stick with that till she knew what Clark had planned. Which, judging by the look on his face, wasn't much of a plan at all.

"Chloe…There's more," Clark said, watching her reaction to his story the entire time, "When Mason died, his power died with him. So, all those things he had floating around the room no longer had anyone to keep them up there. One of those things happened to be a large metal box that was hovering over where Lex was lying… It landed right on top of his head." Her hand flew to her mouth. He paused to let her take that it.

"He's in the hospital right now," Clark whispered, a darkness entering his eyes that looked foreign and alien, "The doctors are working on him right now. There's a nasty gash on his forehead, and, well, he's…Chloe he's in a coma. He won't regain consciousness. The doctor said that's expected, what with the head trauma and all. But then I can't help hoping that maybe he doesn't wake up. I feel horrible about that, I really do, but if he knows, I don't even want to think about the things he has planned for me."

He looks so lost and scared, Chloe can't help but wrap her too short arms around his too tall frame. He squeezes her to him, resting his head on hers. She doesn't know what to say so she just holds him. She loves moments like this, even under the current circumstances. How screwed up was she? But, although she didn't really feel the whole sexual angsty attraction that she used to around Clark, she couldn't help but revel in the closeness of another person. Especially now.

So, things were worse than she thought. Lex knew just about everything. She wasn't going to sugarcoat this with false hope that he may not have seen all that took place. She also wasn't going to stand around here worrying about what Lex would or wouldn't do when he woke up. Clark is right to worry about what Lex will do with him, but that's just because Clark doesn't think of Lex as anything other than a Luthor. Chloe didn't think like that, maybe everyone else thought she did, but a part of her wouldn't give up on Lex. Regardless of all he had done, there were still the little things, and the not so little things, like shielding her and her dad from his father, that wouldn't let Chloe believe he was truly evil. Someone who would go so out of their way to make another human being feel safe and protected couldn't be all that bad. Right?

Collecting her thoughts, she reluctantly pulled away from Clark. Gazing up at him, she could tell he looked a little better than before. Dark and Brooding Clark was never one of her favorite people anyway. "Regardless of what happens, you're not in this alone, Clark. You know there are people in this with you. And I'm one of them. So, what do you say we go pay a visit to our favorite nemesis?"