I Remember You (NC-17) (Updated 3/29/2015)

[phillydragonldy]

"Mr Luthor, I've uploaded all that data to your computer," Gina told him with an air of triumph.

His head snapped up to look at her smiling proudly. His felt his brows furrow in annoyance. "What?"

She was still smiling. "Well, I had to partner your hard drive with the corporate server, but I was able to get you full access to all the employment records that you requested." She finally noticed the storm clouds taking over his expression. "The ones from before you...left..."

"You did what?" he asked in a deadly quiet voice.

Her smile was gone now. "You asked me to get you all the employment records. I did. If that isn't what you wanted, I can change it." Her words were tumbling over each other now. "Or if there is a person in particular that you are trying to find, well, I can search her out..."

He shot up from behind his desk with such ferocity that his chair almost flipped. "Who said I was looking for someone? Who said I was looking for a "HER?"

She swallowed, backing away from him, her eyes wide. "No one, Mr Luthor. I just assumed..."

He knew he was overreacting, but he couldn't help it. It wasn't Gina's fault that he had left himself open to Her.

But he couldn't reach Her, couldn't hurt Her for making him so weak, so raw, so exposed.

So he would fight on the field where he could win.

He sat down in the chair again, taking pains to move slowly and calmly. He replaced his hands on the keyboard loosely and returned his attention to the monitor.

"You're fired," he said without inflection.

"What? But I --" he heard the shock in her voice.

"Go to HR immediately. They will see about your last pay and escort you to clear out your desk."

She said something else, but he tuned it out. He did let his lips quirk in a smile when her heard her crying in the hall.

***************************************

He fucked triplets that night.

Other men may dream of sleeping with twins, but he was twice-dammed Lex Luthor.

He did things that normal men couldn't even venture to dream about.

They were all brunette.

**************************************

He started fucking his way through all the Metropolis brunettes, redheads, and raven haired girls with the same determination that he once held for its blondes.

He avoided blondes without exception.

Also green-eyed girls.

He wanted no reminders of her.

But the dreams, the memories, still came.

****************************************

They were in a Porsche.

Probably mine.

He was driving way too fast down a dirt road, not sure where they were going. He looked quickly over at her and he knew instantly where they were going.

Right here.

He pulled over on the deserted road.

As soon as the car stopped, he heard the click of her seatbelt, then she was in his lap.

Good thing she was tiny, or she would have been crushed against the steering wheel of the sports car.

He was kissing and biting at her neck, chest, ear -- anywhere he could reach as she pulled at his belt.

"Now, Lex. Now!"

His hands worked under her skirt (A skirt!) and literally tore away the material over her hips where it was thinnest. The scraps were thrown onto the car floor as he was finally freed and sinking into her hot wetness.

She was nearly sobbing with need as she rode him in the crowded space of the car. He pulled her top and bra down roughly exposing her bouncing breasts. He pulled one exquisite nipple into his mouth as sucked it in time to his thrusts.

He felt her racing towards completion, and when he felt her at the edge, he bit down -- hard.

She screamed in mingled pain and pleasure as her body crashed up and down with his own blinding pulsing.

****************************

He didn't give a shit that his shout of release echoed through the parking garage. Her long legs with their sky-high heels were wrapped around him and locked behind his back as he pounded into her.

Anyway, he and -- Bridgette? Britney? -- were the only ones in the parking area below the club. Everyone else was still up above, grinding against each other to the pounding rhythm of the music.

He had wanted to escape the vision. So why was he here?

Why had he dragged the brainless -- Bethany? Brandy? -- down here so he could fuck her across the hood of his car?

Because you had Her in the car...and you had to make do with this one over it.

Shut up! he told the mental voice.

He pulled from the panting body of the girl where she lay sprawled across the hood of the Porshe. Removing the condom, he pulled matches from his pocket and set the sticky rubber ablaze. He watched it burn as he tucked his now-flaccid cock back into his slacks and reordered his clothing. The girl giggled as she slid down from the car's hood and adjusted the tiny hot-pink dress back down. He had simply pushed it up to expose the tiny G-string underneath. That he torn to shreds.

Like he had with Chloe...

It hadn't mattered that this bimbo had red hair. It had still been about Her.

He was trying to fuck her -- Chloe -- from out of his head, but instead it seemed she was still fucking with his.

There must be something more here. More than just what he..felt -- had felt! Past tense! -- for her.

He should resume his search for her.

He needed answers.

[phillydragonldy]

Who knew that Chloe was such a God-Damned common name?
He had started searching employee records within the main Luthorcorp offices in Metropolis. Several Chloe's, but none were her. He expanded his search to other Luthorcorp branches in and around Smallville and Metropolis, spooling though the employee photos of every Chloe between 18 and 40. No luck. He didn't think the clues from his dream were wrong -- she must have worked for him in some capacity.

As he looked at the image of another wrong Chloe, a thought struck him. His visions hadn't said anything about her working specifically for Luthorcorp. He had made that assumption himself...maybe that assumption was wrong. Maybe she didn't work directly for Luthorcorp...maybe he owned or partnered with her company. He paused. Even in an area as restricted as Smallvile/Metropolis that still left dozens of enterprises.

He needed more information.

Information on her.

Information about what happened.

******************************

He looked up at the slamming door. Even though the room was fuzzy in the memory, he could hear it slam.

Chloe marched in without preamble, looking fantastic in a short skirt and matching jacket. Her expression was determined.

"Hello, Chloe. I'm surprised to see you up here. If you are taking advantage of my open-door policy, you shouldn't have slammed it." He gave her a mocking smile.

She ignored the smile. Her eyes were bright and shining with some emotion, but her face was hard. "Lex, this is business. I need you to send me on an assignment. With Grant Gabriel gone, that leaves you."

"Well, of course, Miss Sullivan. Care to explain why?" he clasped his hands together and leaned forward, resting his forearms on the desk.

She looked at him hard. "No."

He held her steady gaze, trying to puzzle what was going on. While it wasn't unusual for her to lock horns with him, he sensed that for once he hadn't done something to get her back up. This was about...something else. Something that upset her.

He held her gaze, trying to read through the mask. She was upset and trying to hide it, but she was here asking for help. His help. She wouldn't ask for it directly, it broke their unwritten code. So instead she came and demanded something she knew he could easily grant in the guise of work.

Something big must have happened for her to come to him this way.

He needed to approach this differently. He pushed back from his desk and walked around to the front, then leaned back casually. He crossed his legs at the ankle and slid his hands into his pockets.

Not intimidating...Open. Friendly.

He spoke softly, as if to a skittish animal. "Talk to me, Chloe. I'll listen."

Her face flushed with anger and her hands clenched into fists. "Of course, Lex, I'm sure you'd love to listen. But that isn't what I asked for. I need to be sent on an assignment. Anywhere. There must be some shithole in Iowa that has a story about a puppy in a drainpipe that needs coverage. Send. Me. Away."

He cocked his head. She was purposely trying to pick a fight with him. Interesting. Normally their fights came more...naturally. He suppressed a smile. He would test her resolve.

"Alright, there is a worker's strike in North Dakota at a Luthorcorp nickel plant. I need someone to go and tell the corporate story."

Her look faltered, then he saw the steel return. "I don't do the company line, Lex. I tell the truth. Both sides."

So, whatever it was, wasn't enough for her to compromise her code.

"You know what, this was a mistake. I shouldn't of --" She spun away on her heel without finishing the sentence.

Even in his seemingly relaxed posture, he had been waiting for this. He sprang to his feet in an instant. He reached out and seized her wrist.

She spun around to face him.

"Chloe. What --"

Then he couldn't speak. Her lips were crushing into his.

He was completely thrown by the change in her. She bit and tugged at his lips in unusual aggression.

She was pressing him backward, and still surprised by the sudden change, he let her. When his legs hit the edge of the desk, he sat back and gave himself over to the unparallelled pleasure of Chloe.

He tasted salt and thought at first it might be blood from her hard bites, but when he opened his eyes, he saw she was crying.

What the hell --?

"Chloe --"

"Shut up, Lex. Just shut up and fuck me." She was already working at his belt. His pants were open a moment later and her hand slid inside his boxer briefs. She gave his member three hard, fast pulls and he was ready. She dragged down her own panties, not even bothering to kick them away when they caught on one ankle. Then she was on top of him where he sat on the desk. Her skirt pushed up and him still wearing his boxer-briefs and she slid onto him without preamble.

God, how could she be so ready so fast?

On top of him as she was, her head was slightly above his. She grabbed him roughly by the ears and pulled him to her for a hard, grinding kiss, her teeth clicking against his. Her hips were moving up and down on him, and though he promised himself answers for this unusual display, he was more interested in the feel of her moving on him right now. He planted his feet and wrapped his arms around her to steady her. She was at a somewhat precarious angle, perched on his hips as he sat back against the desk. She was moving on him hard and fast, taking and demanding, uncaring of anything else.

"Yes. Yes!" she encouraged as her body worked him frantically.

Her frantic need pulled at him and he found himself rushing to climax with incredible speed.

"Chloe, I'm --" he gasped as he felt his body tighten. She opened her mouth over his and swallowed his hoarse cry as he pumped hot release into her. A second later, he swallowed her cry the same way.

*****************************

Sullivan. Her name was Chloe Sullivan. That was a name he hadn't encountered yet, but he was still going through records. Slowly. The subsidiary and held company records were not always complete or easy to sort. Maybe it was time to try a new tactic.

Chloe Sullivan worked for Grant Gabriel.

Grant Gabriel...he knew that name. It was a name he remembered seeing in this life.

He needed to think, and he always thought best with a glass in hand. He climbed from the large bed quietly, so as not to disturb his bed companion. He donned the silk robe from the bed poster, ignoring his throbbing erection. This was more important. Moving across the moonlit room, he opened and stepped through the bedroom door quietly, closing it behind. The light of the moon was enough to guide him as he walked down the hall to the open living area. He bee-lined for the sideboard where several bottles of fine scotch waited in crystal decanters. He poured himself two fingers of a particularly mellow blend. Drink in hand, he moved to the large window, thinking. He stared out at the city under the soft glow of the full moon, letting his mind turn over the name, searching for where it fit. Chloe said something about a story assignment and Grant being gone. Something in media? Had Luthorcorp owned any media companies? He watched the activity in the street far, far below, taking small sips of the mellow liquor. Finally, with a mental click, the piece fell into place. It was in the files he had reviewed of projects from his lost Smallville years. There was something significant about the project, but he couldn't recall the details. If he had ever looked at the details. If the project was a failure, he would have moved on to look at something else.

Well, those project files were a lot easier to search than the scattered employee records. For starters, it wasn't unusual for him to delegate searching through back projects. That wouldn't raise any red flags as to his true intention. He would put new "Gina" on it. He pulled his phone from the pocket of the robe and dialed Gina.

"Mr Luthor."

"I need the project files concerning Grant Gabriel on my desk ASAP. He was from a project that took place before I left. I think he was involved in media of some kind."

"Yes, sir. I'll do it now."

He frowned at the phone. He might have to replace this Gina sooner than he would have liked if she didn't realize that was the point of his call.

"Good."

He hung up without another word.

He drained the glass of the last remaining scotch and placed the empty glass on a table for the maid. He made his way back to the bedroom. He felt like the puzzle was finally nearing completion. He would find her soon. Then he would finally be able to understand what had happened and why she haunted him.

**********************************

This time when he slipped into the bed, he awoke his bed companion. He was still heavy with arousal from his earlier vision and needed relief. Feeling pleased with himself for the revelations of the evening, he employed his softest touches, and smoothest techniques.

After he climaxed, he found himself with Chloe again.

**********************************

They were panting into each other's mouths, coming down from their intense orgasms.

Splaying his fingers, he combed her blonde hair away from her face. Her tears were gone.

She pulled her face away, leaving his hand hovering in the air, holding nothing.

She didn't look at him as she extricated herself from his lap.

He sat up, putting his clothes back in order slowly. What was that about? What was going on with her today?

He froze.

Had she heard about what happened...?

No, he had kept it quiet.

Wait. What? Damn it! What had happened to him?!

She still wasn't meeting his eyes as she claimed her panties from around her shoe, and moved them back into place.

Was she...embarrassed? No, the posture was wrong and the only flush on her cheeks was from their sex.

She was definitely upset, maybe even more so now than when she marched through the door.

Was the sex...payment for an assignment? No, not likely. Chloe would do anything if she thought the cause was important enough, but this felt...personal. Not like part of one of her crusades.

She still wasn't looking at him as she moved towards the door.

It was too much. He'd bite.

"Alright. I'll send you on assignment. Somewhere you can be fair and balanced."

She paused, but still didn't look back. "Thank you, Lex." She started moving towards the door again.

He watched her go, still unsure what to think of her strange mood. He could set someone to investigate what she had been up to the last few days. She had been out for two full days.

She paused, with one hand resting on the door knob. She took a deep, shaky breath. She finally looked back at him over her shoulder, her expression complicated. "You could...come with me. If you wanted."

He paused.

She had broken another unspoken rule. They never asked for each other. They just showed up. They didn't plan. They certainly didn't...travel together.

But she wanted him to come with her.

Away.

Away from Smallville. Away from Metropolis.

He knew instantly where.

"Yes," he answered. "Yes, I know just the place."

**************************************

New Gina came through. The project information was waiting on his desk when he arrived at work the next day. Maybe he wouldn't let her go just yet.

Grant Gabriel was the result of Project Scion. He was the clone of Lex's dead brother, Julian, and had worked at The Daily Planet.

The Daily Planet.

He had her.

*********************************

He looked at her picture from her employee records of The Daily Planet.

Chloe. Chloe Sullivan.

There was no mistaking that smile. Those eyes.

He knew who she was.

Unfortunately, he still didn't know where she was now. Her employment at The Daily Planet had ended several years back. Looking at the notation, it looked as if he had fired her.

So what had happened?

And where was she now?

[hfce]

Wow he finally found her. I feel bad about the assistant he fired. He asked her to do her job but she got fired for it. Sheesh.

[cbrunberg]

i agree that love that he finally found her.can't wait to see what happens next

[phillydragonldy]

He decided to wait until he got back to his loft apartment before continuing his search into Chloe Sullivan. This felt like something he should do privately.

For once, he returned home alone.

He told his staff he wanted no distractions or interruptions.

He would shower, then take a meal in his bedroom.

Tonight he was going to find Chloe.

************************

Lex stood under the powerful blasts of the body jets in his shower. He wasn't sure why, but he almost felt as if he was going to meet her tonight. That feeling was what sent him to the shower before starting the search. He had even used his most expensive body wash, the one he reserved for use only around those with the ability to recognize it. Would she know it when he found her? They say that scent and memory were closely linked.

As he washed, his anticipation in finding Chloe coiled and shifted in him, showing physically in his hard cock. He'd been hard since seeing her face on the computer screen this morning. He felt like she was finally within his grasp. The endless meetings between now and then had been almost unendurable.

Maybe I should have taken new Gina up on her offer before leaving the office...

No...that isn't what he really wanted. He wanted Chloe.

He leaned one hand against the shower wall for stability. Without conscious thought, his free hand grasped his cock and began stroking. The thick foam of the wash was a heady lubricant.

If he tracked her down tonight, how long would it be before she would be here with him, in person?

The thought sent a shudder of pleasure through him. He let his mind drift as his hand slid up and down his hard shaft.

***************************

He had seen all seven wonders of the modern world, and decided they all paled in comparison to a soaking wet Chloe Sullivan in a bikini.

Well, at least I'm getting some context for that bikini on the table vision... it must have happened here. Wherever "here" was...

As usual, most of the scene was blurred outside her immediate vicinity. She was standing in a lake, with water lapping gently just below her navel. As the water moved, it played peek-a-boo with the bright red bows over the hips of her bikini bottom. She must have just gone under, because she was pushing wet hair back from her face. It was late evening or night, judging by the moonlight turning the water to silver. The soft glow also caught the water droplets on her skin, making them sparkle like diamonds. He was standing on the shore watching her.

A lake...where the hell is there a lake we would have visited? This didn't feel like the local swimming hole...

She turned to face him once her wet hair was securely tucked behind her ears. "You just going to stand there all night, Luthor?" she mocked, moving into deeper water.

He felt his usual mocking smile settle on his features. Mouthy wench. He moved slowly into the surprisingly warm water until it hit his waist. He smiled at her in challenge, then he arched forward into a shallow dive. He was am exceptional swimmer. His lean muscle was partly a result of many hours spent in the mansion pool.

Circling around her, he surfaced in a riot of water right in front of her. He grinned in victory as she squealed loudly at being drenched. Then it was his turn to be hit with a rush of water as she used both hands to splash him with a great wave. Now it was her grinning.

He narrowed his still-dripping eyelids and sank into the water until just his eyes and nose were visible. She must have sensed her danger because she turned tail and ran for the shore. She didn't stand a chance. He dove under and sliced through the water, catching her behind the knees after only a few steps. She tumbled into the water with a spluttering burst. He found himself laughing as he couldn't remember doing since he was a child as she she splashed and floundered to the surface. She didn't have anything like his grace in the water. Throwing his head back, he let the sound of his laughter carry across the quiet lake. She cursed him vilely, pushing wet hair from her eyes again, setting off another round of laughter. He had to hold his stomach with his arms to steady himself.

He was too busy laughing to catch the dangerous look in her eye once she was steady on her feet again. She didn't sneak, didn't dive. She tackled. All five-feet-two of her tackled him.

He was so startled by finding the tiny blonde attacking him that he fell back with a splash equal to hers. This time it was her laughing when he surfaced.

He was surprised to find that, for once, he wasn't annoyed at being beaten. Actually, quite the opposite. This was... fun. When had he last really had fun?

Probably with her...

She was still laughing when she moved within his reach again. Should he try for the upper hand again? The way he counted it, they were now even. When her hands reached out and she gently began wiping the clinging water drops from his face he decided a tie was fine... for now. She was grinning madly as she wiped water drops off his skin. Watching her, his attention was caught by a particular drop on her own skin. It slid from her hairline by her ear, around her cheek, down her throat, over her chest, and finally disappeared into the valley of her breasts. His arms reached out and slowly dragged her against his body. Her body still vibrated with her chortles. His lips sought the spot by her ear where the drop had originated and followed its trail down her neck. Her laughter halted abruptly with an indrawn breath. His tongue flicked out over her collarbone, catching other warm droplets on his tongue. Instinctively, she shifted slightly, aligning her hips with his. Even in the warmth of the water, the heat of her drew him. Her hips cradling the shape of his hardness through his swim trunks. His tongue finally completed its task of collecting all the sparkling water drops from her neck and upper chest. He let his lips move into the welcoming valley between her breasts.

A woman like this was the reason bikinis existed.

The black fabric with its white polka dots and cheerful little bows beautifully set off the pale creaminess of her skin and its healthy glow. He had been with more than his fair share of models, but he always found their bodies too bony and their skin and hair lacked luster. Not Chloe. She was beautifully rounded in all the best places...all the places where his male mind wished to grab. Using his thumbs, he pushed down the cups of her top, exposing the nipples. Seeing the shine of water on the delicate flesh, he blew gently. Chloe gasped as her nipples tightened and puckered at the sudden coolness where before there was heat. Finding that single fat drop that had escaped between her breasts, he leaned forward and licked it away. She shivered.

God, he loved watching her. Loved exposing her to new pleasures. He doubted she had any sort of experience like this. He found a small mocking smile tug up the corner of his mouth. He had enough experience with water sex for twenty men. He'd been fucking in pools and hot tubs since he was sixteen. Though he did think this was his first time in a lake. It was certainly the first time in this lake.

Wait..where exactly were they??

His hands reached behind her to open her bikini clasp. It came away easily in his practiced hands. He slid the wet, clingy material of the cheerful bikini top down her arms, delighting in her shiver. Once free of her wrists, he sent it flying it back towards the shore. He didn't look, but heard it hit with a wet plop. He let his hands dip into the water again, then palmed her fantastic breasts with wet hands. She shivered at the contact, even though both the water and his hands were warm. His head dipped to take a hard nipple in his mouth, but this time it was him groaning. She was licking water drops from his sensitive scalp. Her hands found his ears and used them to tilt his head so she could tongue bathe every inch. The feeling was incredible. His cock was pulsing desperately against the front of his trunks, seeking her warmth. When she was done and sense returned, he let his hands find the sides of her bottoms. When he encountered the shape of the little bows there, he smilingly tugged them open. It made him feel like he was unwrapping a particularly wonderful gift. Then sliding his thumbs up and around, he caught the sides of the stretchy material and pulled gently but firmly downward. He didn't want to damage such a delightful piece of clothing. As he dragged, he felt her own hands working on the drawstring of his own suit. Once undone, she dragged it down his hips, being careful to work the material around his upthrust member. First she, then he, stepped out of their respective bottoms. Smiling at each other, they threw them back towards the shore with a pair of wet splats. Moving forward, she held his gaze. With a very deliberate maneuver, she wrapped her fingers around his hard shaft under the water. Her hand grasped him firmly and slowly began to slide up and down his steel length. He couldn't recall the last time a woman had given him a handjob, but he was sure it wasn't nearly this good. His eyes slid closed and his head tilted back. Her pace increased as did the pressure of her fingers, getting tighter around the head and loosening slightly at the base. The feeling reminded him of that first plunge into her body -- that tight grasping, milking, tension. Blindly reaching out, he grabbed her ass, and dug his fingers into the firm globes as his hips pumped into her hand. He felt his vision blurring with oncoming orgasm.

"Chloe, I'm..."

His words were cut off when she shifted. His eyes shot open. Instead of pulsing up into her hand, he plunged into her hot wet center. She had aligned him, but he hadn't even realized, lost as he had been. With the first hard push, she cried out at the pleasurable invasion. He shifted his grip from her ass to her thighs, lifting them to wrap around his waist. The water provided incredible buoyancy, giving him the ability to withdraw from her almost completely before slamming her back down onto himself. Hard. Her cries carried over the quiet water as she moved with him. He felt her tightening as her body teetered on the edge. His own was responding in kind, his vision fuzzing white around the edges as the pressure mounted. His pace turned uneven and frantic as he balanced on a knife edge with her. His tension finally snapped at the same instant as hers. He shouted as his hips pounded desperately into her as he released wave after wave of hot cum into her. Just when he thought it was almost over, her body would squeeze him again and he would find another shot releasing. He had no idea how long that went on. No idea how long it took before his poor tortured body could no longer respond to the still rushing waves of her orgasms. He held her limp, shaking form still wrapped around his, and walked them toward the shallows. Once he reached a lesser depth, his knees gave out and he sank into a sitting position on the soft, sandy bottom of the shallows. They sat quietly like that for a long time, letting their heartbeats return to normal. Every so often a new aftershock would ripple through Chloe's body, causing his still buried cock to stir. He was starting to feel sleepy and considering bestirring when he heard Chloe's soft voice just a decibel or two above the sound of the lapping water.

"Thank you."

He couldn't help the mocking, satisfied smile in his voice. "Well, that's new. Never had a woman actually thank me for an orgasm before." He looked down at her, but she wasn't smiling. Her expression was very intense.

"That's not why I said it, Lex. Thank you for bringing me here." She waved a hand around to indicate their surroundings. "Thank you for sharing this with me."

He felt his mocking smile fade at her sincerity. He held her beautiful green eyes.

"You're welcome."

*************************************

Two hours later, he was frustrated by the conflicting results of his search. Had he really taken her...THERE?? Was it really the place he thought it was? He couldn't find any evidence to support the vision. In fact, he could barely find evidence of Chloe Sullivan at all.

Chloe Sullivan showed up in a number of his searches, teasing and tantalizing him with a snippet of text or a single blurred image, but as soon as he tried to dig deeper, the trails wrapped back upon themselves or disappeared into cyberspace. It looked as if she had been scrubbed from records a number of times, with each scrubbing overlaying and confusing the previous trails.

Chloe Sullivan showed up in snippets of conflicting records all over the USA and the world, but he was unable determine how or why or even if they were all Her. The trails made no sense.

It also looked like she had been declared dead at least twice.

Who was this woman???

**********************

He ran down false leads well into the wee hours. He didn't remember closing his eyes, but suddenly he was with Her again in another vision.

**************************

"I'm not sure what sort of article you expect me to write way out here, Lex."

He smiled, looking at the cozy little 2-bedroom cabin next to the lake. For once the scene was completely clear.

Oh God. They really had been THERE. I know that cabin, know that lake. This place was buried in the deep inside himself, behind the walls where he kept his childhood memories.

"A travel piece, of course. The joys of nature and such," he replied, waving a hand at the idyllic location.

She looked at him suspiciously for several moments, before replying slowly. "Ok...then mind telling me where the hell we are?"

"Wyoming."

"Wyoming?" She asked incredulously. "Why the hell are we in Wyoming?"

"This is my mother's cabin," he told her.

"What?" she looked up at him in surprise.

"When I was very small, my mother would take me away here for a few days at a time. After she...got sick, we stopped coming. Then when she died, she left this place directly to me." He lips twisted in bitterness. "Unlike the ranch my father sold."

Chloe stood quietly beside him, looking at the lovely rustic house. The water of the lake was a shining blue mirror behind it. "It's beautiful, Lex." She paused, then continued. "I've never heard you mention this place before, did you come here with..." Her voice trailed off, as if she decided against her question in mid-sentence.

"I haven't been back since my mother died, but I couldn't bear to sell it." He smiled wryly. "So no, I've never brought anyone here before." He looked down at her. "Until now."

Chloe was speechless.

God, he loved when he managed that. It was so rare, that he felt the victory flow through him. He felt his face stretch oddly again -- into a grin. He felt suddenly...giddy??

No, don't be ridiculous. I don't do giddy.

But he couldn't think of another word when he grabbed her hand and started running for the cabin, dragging a laughing Chloe behind.

**************

When he awoke, a completely new and unexpected thought hit him. It was such a shock that he found himself frozen momentarily.

They had both broken the rules. Both of them had.

He realized as he watched her in his memories at his mother's cabin that what he felt for her... she had felt for him too. Maybe not to the same degree, but she had wanted him, and he had been there.

Thinking back on all their encounters, he realized the clues had been there all along. That driving, insatiable sexual need he had for her...her need for him had been just as great.

Sex. Love. Need.

It was all tied together.

He had been so caught up in his weakness of loving her, that he never realized her own weakness for him.

He had been a fool.

He had kept trying to find a hold over her, with money, with fear, by lording over her. Each had failed, just pushing her farther from him. Not bringing her closer.

It has never occurred to him that the times when she was closest was when he was simply just...there. No fancy meals or exclusive events, no elaborate and expensive favors, not even the hot and frantic sex. It was when they were like this. The sex was just part of the basic need to connect, to give himself to her and receive from her in turn. It wasn't about power, or even orgasm. It was about connection.

************************************

His day went by in a haze. He hadn't been able to fall back asleep after his revelation. The loss of sleep and his lack of success in his search weighed him down. He should have been able to find her by now. After all, wasn't that the point of the memory leaks? To drive him to find her?

If he couldn't find her, why was he having these visions at all?

What was locked in his subconscious that was trying so desperately to break free?

*************************************

For a second night, he went home alone and buried himself in his bedroom. Feeling heavy, he went straight to bed even though the sun was still sending out a fiery blaze as it sank below the horizon.

*************************************

In his vision, everything was surreally washed in red, unhealthy gold, and blinding orange.

He heard the suppressed tears in her voice. This time he knew it was because of him.

"You lied to me, Lex. You did it, and you lied!" she raged at him.

He reached for her, grabbing her arms and giving her a hard shake.

She had to understand! his vision self thought.

His eyes bored into hers, pressing her with the entire force of his will to MAKE her understand. "A war is brewing, Chloe. Make sure you are on the right side."

Breaking free from his hard grip, she panted and stared back at him with hard eyes. Even now, she showed no fear. Her voice was tight and angry. "You're insane."

He stood straight and held her gaze unflinchingly. "No, but I will do whatever I have to to make sure this world is safe. You, of all people, should understand that."

He reached for her arm again, meaning to drag her to him. When she was in his arms, everything made sense between them.

She pulled her arm back before he could grasp it, and suddenly he saw stars. He stumbled back in shock and pain, but managed to maintain his balance. He stared at her in disbelief. She had hit him with a surprisingly powerful right hook.

Well, you knew how firm her muscles were under that deceptively supple skin.

She stood looking at him, her face a complex mask of emotion. Her voice was quieter, calmer, but not the least bit yielding. "You're wrong, Lex. Just...wrong." She turned on her heel and walked away without a backward glance. Her heard her whisper softly to herself just before she was gone. "And I'm a fool."

No! He couldn't let it end like this! She was the only bright spot in his life, he couldn't...lose her.

No. She would come to understand. She had to. He would make sure she was protected until she saw he was right.

He would have her taken somewhere safe.

Black Creek.

**************************************

He shot bolt upright in his large empty bed and ran his hands over his face. Sweat sprang out over his entire body even though the room was cool.

Oh, God.

He had her sent to Black Creek. He knew about Black Creek and the...experiments there from his project research.

Why had he thought she would be safe there?

His subconscious knew she wasn't dead, but what if she was...worse than dead?

That would help explain the mess of her records during his searches. He would have had to scrub the records of the illegal facility and her going there. If something had...happened to her, Luthorcorp would have scrubbed her records again.

Even if she was alive, she was probably...not the woman he knew in these visions.

Not after Black Creek.

He didn't need to find her now. There was no point. She might as well actually be dead.

He had foolishly excised her from his life by trying to cage her.

Her bright smile -- gone. Her stimulating presence -- gone.

His soul... gone.

*************************

He threw himself into work. He couldn't bear to continue the search for her, knowing what he was likely to find. If she indeed lived, she wouldn't be His Chloe anymore.

There were no more dreams.

That vision of him condemning her to Black Creek had been the last. Whatever message his corrupted mind was trying to send was done.

But why? Why did she bleed through? Why torture him with visions of light and life with her, only to show him how hopeless it all was?

It didn't make sense.

**************************

He continued to pursue the women of Metropolis, but laconically. He didn't choose by specific type or category anymore. He brought home whoever struck his mild fancy that night. It was more out of habit than true lust now.

Then one night the unthinkable happened.

He couldn't perform.

Not once in his entire life had he failed in the bedroom.

His companion was very understanding.

It made him feel sick.

Looking at his unresponsive cock, he thought, This is something that happened to ordinary men, and I am nothing close to ordinary. I am Lex Luthor, damn it!

Enough was enough.

*************************

He decided to push the whole thing from his mind. Pretend it never happened.

Love was weakness. He didn't need it.

He would fuck the women of Metropolis raw. He would crush his corporate rivals. He would pursue his shady off-book projects. He would build an empire of technology, money, and most of all - power.

He was a Phoenix. He would burn all against him to ash.

He was Lex Luthor.

He didn't need her.

She was nothing but a memory.

He was Lex Luthor.

He didn't need a soul.

[reyeslu]

The Black Creek revelation blew. me. away.

[phillydragonldy]

While I would LOVE to be able to claim Lex sending Chloe to Black Creek as an original idea, I have to give credit where it is due -- canon and (even better IMO) Apeygirl! Canon indicates that Lex had Chloe seized and sent there, especially from what Tess has to say about Black Creek in season 8. What canon does not indicate is his exact motivation for doing so. That part is up to us for interpretation, and with a character as complex as Lex, there are soooo many great options!

For a Chlexer story, it was Apeygirl and her wonderful story, "The Depths we sink to" that introduces the idea of Lex sending Chloe away to protect her. While my story has him doing this to keep her safe until she can "come to her senses" as he sees it, the idea of Black Creek originally being a good thing in his mind originated with her. Though, of course, once he is "gone," things at Black Creek do not proceed as he planned in any storyline -- canon, mine, or Apeygirl's...

[RevDorothyL]

Excellent use of Apeygirl's interpretation of the Black Creek confinement, but with your own spin that has Lex thinking he must've broken Chloe in the process, setting him up so nicely for the 'big reveal' he enjoys in chapter 8!

[reyeslu]

While I would LOVE to be able to claim Lex sending Chloe to Black Creek as an original idea, I have to give credit where it is due -- canon and (even better IMO) Apeygirl!

Hi Phillydragonldy, I've got to agree with RevDorothyL, you did an awesome job on your spin of the confinement.

[hfce]

That doesn't sound like a good place. I am scared for Chloe.