OOM: Small table in Milliways

[torched_reporter]

There is something to be said about the sort of place where you can wind up celebrating a holiday months before you otherwise would back home. Not that this day of 'omg love and romance' is Chloe's favorite holiday or anything like that. Far from it; all those Valentine's Days in the past had been, well, very sucky as she would watch Clark moon over Lana yet again.

But right now, Chloe Sullivan is optimistic. Optimistic that today is going to set forth a new trend, one filled of non-sucky Valentine's Days from here on out. So, she's dressed nicely today, wearing a pretty pink (even if she hates pink) blouse and a brown courdary skirt, putting in the extra effort to make her hair more wavy than normal today too.

No, really, she's not trying to impress him. Seriously! Come on, like she'd ever do a thing like that.

But right now, she is sitting at a small table, playing with an envelope in her hands as she waits for Riley to show up.

Hopefully, he'll show up soon.

Comments

[shortofcrazy]

Riley jogs down the steps. He nearly trips on the last one when he sees Chloe sitting at a table facing the stairs, though, 'cause damn. She's so pretty.

He catches himself, though, and rights himself, managing to keep something behind his back the whole time. He has made something of an effort, too; corduroys and a green sweater over a collared shirt, though he's wearing his favorite sneakers. His glasses, too; his contacts ran out a little while ago, and -- he doesn't want to charge anything that expensive, either to his account or to Chloe's. He heads over.

"We're going to pretend that never happened," he says, bending down to kiss her.

[torch-reporter.livejournal.com]

"You me--" Her response is muffled when he kisses her, and she automatically reaches one hand up into his hair to press his lips harder against hers.

When she's finally satisfied with the kiss, Chloe chuckles and looks up at him. "You mean that thing just now where somehow, you miraculously managed to mimic how Clark acted whenever he used to get at least two feet near Lana Lang? It's flattering, really."

Because, she's never really been the pretty girl. Not that often anyway.

[shortofcrazy]

"I said," he says, looking pained as he swings into the seat across from her, still with a hand behind his back, "we're going to pretend that never happened. So-- I have no idea what you're talking about. You're awfully pretty, though, Chloe Sullivan. A guy could fall and crack his skull open, staring at you, if he wasn't careful."

Beat.

"Note how I said 'a guy,' not 'me,' since nothing embarrassing just happened."

[torch-reporter.livejournal.com]

Normally, Chloe would be rolling her eyes right about now. And she really, really wants to. But instead, she giggles and blushes.

It's not exactly the world's most romantic metaphor, but it works.

"Of course not, Riley. You'd never do anything as clumsy as that."

[shortofcrazy]

He grins. "I knew I thought you were the best for a reason." Or five million.

[torch-reporter.livejournal.com]

"Right," Chloe snickers as her hands begin to fidget with the envelope in her lap again. "Because I know when to cover up your dignity, huh?"

[shortofcrazy]

His grin broadens, "Right on," then softens. He pushes his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. "Happy Valentine's Day."

[torch-reporter.livejournal.com]

She grins, pushing back a loose strand of hair. "Happy Valentine's Day to you, too."

It's weird, having someone to say that too. But, you know, weird in the good way.

"I, um..." Chloe pauses and rolls her eyes. "I made you something."

The envelope is slid across the table just at the same moment when a waitrat comes over to take their order. Figures, huh?

[shortofcrazy]

"I--"

There is a waitrat. It is staring at him with beady little expectant eyes.

Riley shoots it a sour look, but says, "Wine. Two glasses. A, uh, red?" He glances at Chloe to see if this meets with her approval.

[torch-reporter.livejournal.com]

Chloe nods, and eyes the waitrat. "And next time wait till there's a pause in the conversation to come over?"

The waitrat looks confused, but understands the drink order. It nods (in reference to the wine, not Chloe's request) and scurries off.

[shortofcrazy]

Riley settles whatever it is that he has on his seat behind him, and he pulls the envelope to him and picks it up. He looks at it thoughtfully a moment, and then he puts it up to his ear and shakes it lightly, the way one might shake a package, trying to figure out what's inside.

"Is it ... a new toaster?"

[torch-reporter.livejournal.com]

That gets a look. A very pointed look.

"Riley."

It is, actually, a homade card. With a photograph of her and Chloe glued on to the front. Inside is a note. Because expressing feelings outloud has never been Chloe's strongpoint. Especially the cases of awkward emotional intamcy Valentine's usually brings:

Riley--

Happy Valentine's Day. So in yet another classic maneuver to avoid emotional intimacy, I wrote my feelings down on here instead of telling you them face to face. Okay, if I'm sitting here when I give you this? Consider yourself lucky. I've probably come up with some lame excuse to go powder my nose instead.

So, here's the thing. If there's one thing I've learned I'm good at, it's keeping secrets. And I think I've kept this one since the first moment I saw you again after all those years out of here. Actually, I'm surprised you haven't guessed it yet.

Anyway, my dad told me once that there were these two types of girls. It's funny, cause the last time I wrote anything like this, I mentioned that to. It was to Clark then cause he was sick, and I thought he was dying. He never knew. But I really want you to know, cause you could've died on that crazy treasure quest of yours and then, well...

There's two type of girls: the ones you grow out of and the ones you grow into. I think that these past months have shown which one I am to you. You can't leap tall buildings in a single bound and you don't have x-ray vision. You're probably as normal as normal gets, but when I'm with you, I feel like I'm finally someone's dream girl. And I never thought I'd get to feel like that.

Thank you, Riley. Thank you for just being you and putting up with me and accepting me and just thank you. You've been worth the wait all those years I couldn't get back to Milliways.

And I think I love you.

-CS

[shortofcrazy]

Riley hasn't gotten quite that far yet. He tears open the envelope and pulls out the card. He sees the obvious amount of time and care that went into making it, and he grins at the picture of the two of them, smiling at the camera with his arm around her. "Is this what you were being so sneaky about the other night?" he asks, glancing up for a second.

[torch-reporter.livejournal.com]

"Um, yeah." She makes a sort of half-nod, half-shrug gesture and glances down at the table.

He's going to open it and even though she meant everything she wrote in there last night, Chloe doesn't know if she can face him reading it. Because it's always been one sucky Valentine's Day after another for her and face it. Except for Jimmy and a handful of meteor freaks, Riley's the only other guy to actually recipricate her feelings.

She's not sure if she could handle any sort of rejection from him.

Her head peaks up again and she shrugs. "Actually, come to think of it, I might have left the light on upstairs."

[shortofcrazy]

Riley pauses with the card half-open. "So? We're paying for renting the room, not for utilities."

Beat.

"Wait, I was the last one up there, anyway."

[torch-reporter.livejournal.com]

Okay, bad move there, Sullivan. Mentally, Chloe berates herself; you'd think she'd know better. Coming up with last minute excuses was always one of her strong points. It had to be, what with all the times she's snuck unauthorized sections of the Smallville Medical Center or other places she wasn't exactly supposed to be at.

"It doesn't hurt to double check?" Chloe suggests with a weak smile.

[shortofcrazy]

Riley knows her. She's trying to escape, for some reason or another. He could argue this.

Or he could just shrink down in his seat and hook his sneaker under the crossbar of her chair, so she can't push it back from the table.

Guess which one he does!

Here's a hint: he smugly says nothing and flips the card open all the way.

[torch-reporter.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, I'll be right back," she says and tries to push her chair away from the table.

Only to find it stuck -- as he opens the card and






and she takes a deep breath, trying to keep her face as level as she can.

[shortofcrazy]

Riley is an excellent poker player.

He really doesn't have much of a poker face, though, and that becomes starkly apparent as he reads the note.

He grins at, I've probably come up with some lame excuse to go powder my nose instead. As he reads on, though, his smile slowly fades, to be replaced by concentration, and a sort of -- silent wonder.

By the time he gets to You've been worth the wait all those years I couldn't get back to Milliways, he wants to look at her but his eyes are glued; he can't stop reading.

And he's glad he doesn't.

And I think I love you.

He smooths his thumb over the card once, and he looks up. That wonder is still there--he's still stunned, sometimes, that she's with him--but it's accompanied by a smile.

This is not any sort of smile.

It is one that starts out small and honest and rapidly becomes an enormous ear-to-ear beaming smile.

"You--" he starts, but he has to stop and try again. "I don't know how I got so lucky, Chloe, but I did, and--" He reaches for her hand over the tabletop. "I know I love you."

[torch-reporter.livejournal.com]

"I know it's lame and--"

I know I love you.





At some point (to Chloe, it seems like eons after she had shut up at his words), she takes in a shaky breath and blinks back tears.

She...she couldn't have heard that correctly, right? After all, she's the sidekick - the best friend and no one...

I know I love you.

...no one's ever said those words to her like that before.

The beginnings of a smile appear on her face and she looks up at him, still hesitant and not even fully aware of his hand on hers.

"Really?"

[shortofcrazy]

"I've been in love with you for ages," he says, and there's no doubting his eyes, steady and warm and so blue behind his glasses.

Beat.

He tips his head to one side. "Since before it was entirely legal, but -- yeah." He smiles at her. "Really."

[torch-reporter.livejournal.com]

The hesitant grin becames a full grown beam and Chloe laughs and smiles even more.

He loves her.

It's silly and girlish and it's Valentine's Day, but he loves her.

Riley Poole loves her, Chloe Sullivan. Right now, in her eyes, he's as much of a superhero as Clark. Just cause of that.

"I guess it's my turn to try with the vocalizations, isn't it?" There's another glance down at the table before she looks back up at him, meeting his eyes. "You're probably - actually, you are one of the best things that ever happened to me. And I love you."

[shortofcrazy]

His smile is so bright as to be dangerously near dazzling, and he's silent, letting that wash over him.

"And I love you."

He lifts her hand and kisses it. It's clumsy and unpracticed, as he isn't typically given to random acts of gallantry, but the feeling is real.

"You're the best, Chloe Sullivan."

[torch-reporter.livejournal.com]

She doesn't care about the clumsy kiss because it's a kiss from him (her lover because that word just finally seems right to use) and she's happy.

Happier than she's ever been in a long time and it shows -- the typically eloquent (or at least boisterous) reporter is at a lack of words.

So, Chloe smiles and laughs once more before the waitrat comes over with their wine.

[shortofcrazy]

"Thank you, my man," says Riley, taking one glass for himself and another for Chloe. He looks to her, hand still holding hers. "You want to get something to eat?"