Thanks, Gecko! I've had a breakthrough on one of my other stories so I'm running with that for now...but I'll be back here again soon, hopefully before the end of the month!Originally Posted by gecko
Thanks, Gecko! I've had a breakthrough on one of my other stories so I'm running with that for now...but I'll be back here again soon, hopefully before the end of the month!
"I make my own destiny."
Back again, peeps. Sorry for the delay!
Title: Orchestrato
Author: BabyDee
Pairing: Chlex
Rating: PG13 for now, NC-17 later
Warnings: None
Timeline: Safehouse Summer of Love, End of Season 3/Beginning of 4
Disclaimer: All characters belong to the CW & DC comics.
Summary: Lex inexplicably bonds with Chloe whilst keeping her survival a secret from the world
Feedback: …makes me squee.
Chapter 4
Despite his initial efforts to stay away from Chloe, Lex soon found himself visiting her on a daily basis. Of course, he was now careful to administer the antidote in advance, so that if by chance he got aroused around her - as he often did - it would already be on-hand to counteract the poison as it accelerated through his system.
Of course, he’d mentioned this to his doctor, who was very emphatic in his disapproval.
“This is a very powerful antidote, Mr Luthor, and the fact that your body can tolerate it doesn’t mean you should subject yourself to it whenever a pretty girl tickles your fancy,” he’d said sternly. “I told you, I’m hopeful that your own immune system will eventually become resistant to the poison or somehow weed it out…but that won’t happen if you develop a dependence on a chemical cure.”
It made complete sense, of course, and it was a very valid reason for him to stay away from Chloe Sullivan.
But he couldn’t. It was as if there was an invisible cord drawing him to her, and he was powerless to resist. Their ‘Best of Three’ Scrabble sessions quickly became a standard part of their daily routine, and he loved watching her face light up whenever she won or landed a high-value word on the board.
They talked a lot, as well. He and Chloe had long, rambling discussions on everything from politics and religion to Greek mythology and folklore. He still flirted with her, of course, but also found himself really talking to her; deep, intense conversations about things he’d never spoken about with anyone.
One afternoon the following week, when the word GINGER had popped up on the Scrabble board again, Chloe asked a rather personal question.
"So, um...your hair…" she began hesitantly.
“Or lack thereof,” he said with a smile. “What about it?”
“I was wondering; were you affected...everywhere?"
"I wondered how long it would be until you got around to verifying the gingernuts theory," he replied with a chuckle, his grin widening as her cheeks turned bright red. "To answer your question, yes; my entire body was affected. Do you require visual proof of that?”
“No! No, no no,” she said hurriedly, squirming in embarrassment. “I only ask because…well, you have eyebrows, and I wondered how they were spared.”
“They weren’t,” he replied. “My father had hair from his own brows individually implanted into my face in the hope that they’d grow, but my body rejected them and they fell out in less than a week. When that didn’t work, he had the doctors put synthetic ones back in and got them to cauterise the follicles, sealing them in permanently.”
Chloe winced. “That must have hurt.”
“It did. I was twelve years old at the time.”
She frowned. “Does that mean your body can’t sustain hair growth at all?”
“That’s pretty much it, yes,” he said with a nod at the board. “Your turn.”
She glanced at her tiles and wrinkled her nose. “Pass. I suppose if you wanted to, you could always have the same procedure that was done on your eyebrows on other parts of your body,” she suggested. “The world has come a lot further in cosmetic surgery and anaesthesia that they had back then.”
He smiled. “You’re still wondering why I haven’t invested in that good toupee, I take it?”
She cringed and squeezed her eyes shut. “I am so, so sorry for saying that, Lex,” she said meekly. “In my defence, I wasn’t myself.”
“Yeah, I heard about the parasite,” he said. “But you were only saying what everyone else in this town must be thinking.” He nodded at the board. “Your turn again.”
“Pass.”
He frowned. “D’you need to change tiles?”
She shook her head. “Nah. I’ll risk holding onto them.”
He studied the board briefly and then placed his tiles before continuing.
“Like you said, the surgery’s cosmetic,” he replied. “I don’t need it. I appreciate my uniqueness now, even though it wasn’t easy getting to the point where I could embrace it.” More so when he had a father with a headful of thick, wavy locks that would make even a supermodel green with envy, he thought lamely.
“To be honest, I prefer you like this,” she said tilting her head and studying him with a critical eye.
He smiled. “You’re only saying that because you’ve never known me with hair.”
She grinned. “No, I’m saying it because I simply can’t imagine you with a mop of ginger ringlets,” she said, smothering a giggle. “Somehow I think that look would be a little less intimidating.”
An image of himself in a sharp business-suit with a curly carrot-top made him burst out into laughter. “Touché, Chloe,” he said. “Nicely put.”
“Seriously though,” she said, patting his arm. “…you look good like this. Don’t change it.”
He smiled. “I’m not in a hurry to. Believe me, this is one bad situation I’m happy to make the best of.”
“Well, you know what they say,” she said, trying to sound optimistic. “Whatever doesn’t kill you—”
“…leaves a horrible scar,” he finished bitterly.
She shook her head. “That’s not what I was going to say.”
“Maybe not, but it’s the truth, isn’t it?” he challenged. Pain from years of unhappiness welled up in him, and the words just tumbled out of him.
“I’m not just talking about myself here, Chloe. You, me, Lana, Clark…we’re all messed up from the tragic events of the meteor shower. Clark, maybe not so much because he has two parents who actually give a damn, but the rest of us…” he sighed, thinking of Lana’s parents, his baldness, the kid who’d been tied up in the cornfields on that fateful day, and Chloe’s own mother who’d reportedly lost her mind shortly after the meteor shower. “We’re all scarred,” he finished quietly.
Chloe was silent for a while, then she crawled around and came to sit beside him.
“That probably true,” she said softly taking his hand in hers . “But scars heal, Lex. That’s also true. You just need the right salve.”
He stared into her hazel eyes, and his fingers automatically tightened around hers. His gaze dropped to her lips, and for a split second he felt himself instinctively leaning in, his head lowering to hers ever so slightly.
“Oh, no!” she wailed, and he blinked and reared back immediately.
“What is it?” he managed to croak.
“You’ve got all the U’s!” she moaned, gesturing at his tray of letters. “I’ve got the Q, and I’ve been holding on to all the letters to form the word QUINTET, but I can’t do it without a U.” She folded her arms and pouted. “That’s an automatic 10-point deduction, because I know I’m never gonna shift that sucker.”
Her folded arms lifted her bosom upwards and outwards, and his gaze dropped from her lips to her cleavage. Immediately the tightening in his groin was followed by a searing pain around his heart, and he reluctantly tore his eyes away from her and stood.
“Tell you what – we’ll have a rematch tomorrow,” he said gruffly, glancing at his watch. “I need to get going, but can I use your bathroom first?”
She sighed and rolled her eyes. “How many times do I have to tell you, Lex? It’s technically your bathroom.”
He smiled and headed for the bathroom, his syringe discreetly tucked under his sleeve. He gritted his teeth in agony as he got to the bathroom and bolted the door behind him.
He thought briefly again about the doctor’s words and scaling back on his visits, but even as the needle pierced his skin and the cooling fluid travelled along his vein, he knew that wasn’t going to happen.
Maybe it was time he upped his dosage, instead.
***
Chloe hummed to herself as she set out the ingredients for her lunch the following afternoon. Cooking for one seemed almost pointless, but it had the advantage of being quick, and also offered her the chance to hone the one skill that was seriously lacking in her repertoire.
She was slicing tomatoes when her laptop beeped, indicating she had received an instant message. She smiled. It had to be from Lex; he was, after all, the only person who knew she was alive, and what her secret email address was.
Ready for that rematch? he asked.
She grinned and typed a return message. I’m always ready, Lex. See you in an hour!
Try 10 minutes. :-)
Chloe frowned. Impossible. How could he possibly get here in 10 minutes if he was sitting at a computer at work? Unless…
Are they choppering you in? she asked.
That would be most unwise, he’d replied. I’ll show you when I get there.
I’m making pasta and meatballs for lunch; care to join me? she offered.
I’d love to!
Hope you’ve written a will, she warned. I’m a terrible chef. :-\
You can’t be that bad! he wrote back.
I am. Most folks run a mile from my attempts at cooking :-( she typed, and took a sip of her coffee while she waited for his reply.
When it came, her eyes nearly popped out of her head.
Well, I’m not ‘most folks’, and I’ll gladly spank your culinary ass. :-)
***
To be continued…
"I make my own destiny."
LOL!! The ending was golden. LOL!!! I loved this update.
You might want to got to the first post of your story and change the date there instead. Otherwise people won't know you have a new chapter.
"Everyone seems normal until you get to know them. "
I loved it!! And mostly I love that Chloe apologized Lex for that tuppee. I really hope she could do that in the show. You fixed it!
Hee! Thanks, glad you liked it. I'll try not to keep you waiting too long for Chloe's reaction to that.
Sorted. Thanks for the heads-up!You might want to got to the first post of your story and change the date there instead. Otherwise people won't know you have a new chapter.
"I make my own destiny."
I felt so bad for him when she said that, I just had to fix it.
Working hard on Chapter 5; fingers crossed I'll get it posted before the end of the month. Thank so much for your comments, Trinity!
"I make my own destiny."
can't wait for next chapter.loved the end when lex types he's not most folks and he would spank her ass
I thought that might wake y'all up!
Glad you like, and I'm working hard on the next chapter as we speak. Thanks for commenting, cbrunberg!
"I make my own destiny."
I am becoming a tad bit worried about the antidote that Lex is giving himself--that sounds like it could potentially harm him.
But the then the Chlexy banter makes me smile
Keep up the great work with this fic.
KATHY
"Don't quote me to me!" Detective Danny "Danno" WIlliams, Hawaii Five-0, episode 1.8 Mana'o
"This could barely fill up Thumbelina!" SALIGIA by westwingwolf
My Fanfic Master List
My livejournal: An Accused Heretic
You should be worried. The doctor's right, he isn't doing himself any favours.
See? You think it's worth it, Lex thinks it's worth it...it's all good!But the then the Chlexy banter makes me smile
Will do! Thanks as always for commenting, Kathy.Keep up the great work with this fic.
"I make my own destiny."
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