Chlollie Fanfic: Love For Realsies, Chapter 20

[babydee1]

Okay, here's another one!  Getting ever closer to that Chlollie reunion, just one little niggle to be sorted out first...

Enjoy!

Title:              Love for Realsies

Author:          BabyDee
Pairing:          Chlollie

Rating:           NC-17.  (This chapter PG-13) Sequel to Just for Funsies.

Warnings:     Angst!

Timeline:      Season 9 (Conspiracy- Checkmate)

Disclaimer:   All characters belong to the CW & DC comics. 

Summary:     Chloe finds it increasingly difficult to resist Ollie’s affections.

Feedback:      …is a terrible thing to keep to yourself. J

 

 

Read previous chapter here.

Read story from the beginning here.

 

 

 

Chapter 20

 

“I love you, Chloe,” Clark said seriously as he pressed her palm against his cheek.  “You do know that, don’t you?”

 

Chloe stared at him a while before replying.  “Yeah, I do,” she said, a wide smile on her face. “And I love you, too.”

 

Clark studied her face intently for a long moment.  “But not the way you do Oliver,” he finally said softly. 

 

She shook her head and laughed cheekily as she straightened.  “No.  Definitely not the way I do Oliver.  Which, ironically, is why I can say it to you; does that makes sense, at all?”

 

He nodded.  “We’ve been through the worst already, so you’ve got nothing left to lose by telling me.”

 

“Exactly!” she grinned, snapping her fingers.  “I do believe I am well and truly over you, Clark Kent.”

 

He sighed dramatically and made a wry face.  “Ah, well.  Had to happen sometime.”

 

Chloe smiled.  “You were right, you know.”

 

He frowned.  “About what?”

 

“About not messing with the status quo.  If we were exes, we’d never have gotten our friendship back.  This way, we’ll always have each other.”

 

“Maybe you’re right,” he finally said quietly. 

 

“’Course I am,” she said flippantly as she slipped on her sandals.  “Okay, gotta run.  I’ve got a hot blond to ride.”

 

“Ugh, Chloe!” he groaned, squeezing his eyes shut.  “Damn it, I so do not need a visual of that!”

 

She laughed gaily and trotted off down the path, her blond hair bobbing as she jogged. 

 

***

 

Clark watched her as she retreated, keeping his superhearing at high alert in case she changed her mind and needed his assistance.

 

He needn’t have bothered.  She got back to the farm and he heard her start up the engine of the truck, humming softly as she headed out towards Metropolis.

 

He’d done the right thing today.  He’d done the right thing for Chloe, and for Oliver.  His greatest desire was to see her happy, and he had no doubt that Oliver would love her, look after her and protect her to the best of his ability.

 

Yes, he’d done the right thing.  He would tell himself that for the rest of his life whenever the pain of losing Chloe to another man threatened to destroy his soul.

 

Walking away from her after Jimmy’s funeral had been the hardest decision of his life, but the only way he could think of to keep her safe.  Oliver had been right; Chloe was giving him too much of herself.  Running away with Davis to save him from the Beast had been the greatest selfless act of love Clark had ever received.  But it had come at a price; that price was Jimmy Olsen’s life, and those of all the other people Doomsday slaughtered whilst he was on his rampage.

 

So he’d held her one last time, fixing his gaze on the bloodstain on the floor to remind himself of what he had to do. 

 

“Clark Kent is dead,” he had said blankly.  “Goodbye, Chloe.”

 

With those words, he’d cut himself out of her life and pointedly ignored her afterward, knowing her heart would break a little more everyday as he turned to the one person who he knew she wouldn’t put up a fight against; her own cousin. 

 

And it had worked.  Chloe was over him.  But seeing her in Oliver’s arms had hammered home to him that he, Clark, wasn’t over her, and never would be.

 

He stared bleakly out over the lake and sighed, his breath rippling the water.  For one brief minute, she’d kissed him, and he’d thought that maybe, just maybe there was some love left in her heart for him, some residual spark of the fire that had burned brightly in her heart for him for over a decade. 

 

But even as she’d said she loved him, he’d looked into her eyes and seen the truth.  She loved him; but she wasn’t in love with him, not anymore. 

 

Her heart belonged to Oliver now.  He knew that, which was why he couldn’t let her walk away from him and make the same mistake he’d made.

 

He ran a hand through his hair, feeling drained and weary.  At least he and Chloe had their friendship back; only this time, it was more painful than ever.

 

Because now he would always have her…but never have her. 

 

A solitary tear made its way down his face, but he declined to wipe it away.  Slowly it gathered at the bottom of his jaw, and then dropped, landing in the water below and making the faintest of ripples. 

 

Clark sighed and shut his eyes tightly in an attempt to stem further tears from falling, but it was futile.  Eventually he gave up and covered his face with his hands, his shoulders heaving as he wept openly. 

 

He could only hope the agony of missed opportunities and the heartache of unrequited love would lessen with time.

 

Somehow, he doubted it.

 

***

 

Oliver drove along the motorway, not caring where he was going.  He felt hollow, empty and sick.

 

Chloe loved Clark.  After all the crap he’d put her through, after the dreadful way he’d treated her, she still loved him.  And this time, he loved her back. 

 

For the past two weeks, visions of Chloe with some nameless, faceless man had plagued him.  Now, there was a name and a face to torment him, and it was the face of Clark Kent that he imagined kissing Chloe, making love to her that haunted him and caused his insides to tighten in painful knots.

 

He shook his head to clear the image away, but it was futile.  All his mind’s eye could see was Clark, his hands on Chloe, touching her intimately while she sighed and clung to him…

 

Oliver’s hands tightened on the wheel and his foot descended on the gas pedal.  His vision blurred with tears that he couldn’t stop from gathering, the only saving grace being the wind which whipped them away from his face before they fell. 

 

Chloe and Clark…

 

God, he felt like such a fool.  He wanted to grab Chloe and shake her till her teeth rattled in her head.  He wanted to make love to her until she saw sense, until the only breathless name on her lips was his.

 

He wanted to do Clark Kent some serious damage, and he had the kryptonite to do it.

 

His knuckles whitened as he clenched the steering wheel tighter and depressed the gas pedal right to the floor, zooming past every other vehicle on the motorway at the Ferrari’s top speed. 

 

Just then the sound of sirens permeated his thoughts.  A cop car was trying valiantly to catch up with him, probably to get him to pull over.  Briefly he considered making a run for it; there was no way a squad car could match his own far superior acceleration.  But he sighed and slowed, bringing the car to a stop by the side of the road. 

 

There just wasn’t anymore fight left in him. 

 

***

 

Officer Matt Johnson stopped his police car stopped a few yards behind the Ferrari and leapt out, gun in hand.  He was nearing middle-age, but was still reasonably fit and intimidating, and he advanced threateningly on the motionless blond man sitting in the car.

 

“You maniac, do you have any idea how fast you were driving?” he yelled.  “You could have killed someone, or at least yourself!”

 

The man in the car didn’t bother responding.  Johnson narrowed his eyes, then stared at the driver in instant recognition.

 

“Oliver Queen?” he said.  “Is everything alright, sir?”

 

No answer.  A quick glance showed him that Oliver didn’t appear to be dangerous, intoxicated or stoned, so he put away his weapon and lowered his voice. 

 

“Are you hurt, Mr Queen?”

 

Oliver Queen snorted.  “Define ‘hurt’,” he said scathingly. 

 

Well, at least he didn’t seem to be in any physical pain.  Emotionally, it was probably a completely different story. 

 

“Mr Queen, I’m gonna have to ask you to step out of the vehicle for me,” he said gently.  “It’s just standard procedure.” 

 

Oliver sighed and opened the car door, then slowly got to his feet and walked around to the back of the car.  “I’m not armed,” he said quietly. 

 

“I didn’t think you were, sir,” Johnson replied.  “I’m going to have to give you a substance test, just so I can rule out DUI, is that okay?”

 

Oliver nodded.  “It’s fine.  I haven’t been drinking, either.” 

 

After the breathalyser test, Johnson nodded, satisfied.  “No alcohol in your system whatsoever,” he said.  “But I’m afraid I still have to bring you into the station for the reckless driving.  Again, just standard procedure, and you won’t likely end up with a record, but…”

 

“You have to do your job, I understand,” Oliver said quietly.  “And you’ve been very professional and accommodating, so…thank you.”

 

Johnson smiled.  “Okay.  Please secure your vehicle, and come with me.” 

 

***

 

Chloe hummed along to the music on the truck’s stereo and drummed her fingers on the steering wheel as she drove along the motorway.  It had been an interesting day, full of revelations. 

 

After ten years, she and Clark were finally at a good place.  And for the first time ever, he’d been the one to offer sound relationship advice to her, the result of which she was now on her way to see Oliver to show him how she felt.

 

A wide grin split her face, and she felt happier than she had in days.  She was going to see Oliver again!  The last two weeks had been nothing short of hell, and she wanted nothing more than to be back in the safety of her man’s arms.  Onyx would be happy at the farm for a few days with Clark and Shelby.  She and Ollie had some quality catching up to do.

 

She smiled wider and sang along with the car stereo.

 

Sometimes we fall down, can’t get back up

We’re hiding behind skin that’s too tough

How come we don’t say ‘I love you’ enough?

Till it’s too late…It’s not too late…

 

Chloe’s smile dimmed a little as the words filtered through her brain.  God, she hoped it wasn’t too late.  If Oliver didn’t want her back, or if he insisted on hearing her say she loved him before he took her back, then she might have a slight problem on her hands.

 

The song went on.

 

We’re all staring down the barrel of a gun

So if your life flashed before you, what would you wish you woulda done?

 

She grinned at how appropriate that line was when taken into context of what she and Oliver had been through the last couple of weeks, and started singing again as she sped along.

 

Well, we’ve gotta start looking at the hands of the time we’ve been given

If this is all we got, then we’ve gotta start thinkin’ that

Every second counts on a clock that’s tickin’

Gotta live like we’re dyin’…

 

We’ve only got 86,400 seconds in a day to

Turn it all around, or to throw it all away

Gotta tell him that I love him while I’ve got the chance to say…

 

Just then, a flash of silver caught her eye and she instinctively slammed her foot on the brakes, hard.  Her tyres screeched in protest and the smell of burning rubber filled the air, but there was only one thing that registered in her mind.

 

Oliver’s car was parked by the side of the motorway.

 

***

 

Chapter 21…