"...Lana, you can..."

Clark! Pete! Wake up for school!

Clark and Pete looked at each other, not hearing what Lana's dare was. Then they looked back at Lana and Derek. Lana was smiling and looking at Clark, so was Derek and the rest of the gang. Everyone gasped at the dare, and most of them started chuckling.

C'mon boys! I don't want to tell you again!

Clark shook his head to try and rid his mind of the voice, but by doing so, he realized he was asleep and groggily opened his eyes to see what was going on. A blinding light entered the room and a stern motherly voice echoed through their pounding heads.

It was just a dream! Clark thought. But why did he have a headache.

Pete's mom knocked on the door, "BOYS! GET UP! NOW!"

He heard Pete roll over, he was laying on the ground, "Alright! Alright! We're up!"

Clark rolled over on his side to look at Pete and was astonished at what he saw. Why was Pete sleeping on the ground when Clark was sleeping on the bed?

He rolled back over and bumped into something, rather, someone .

"Lana!"

Some dream...

Clark backed away from Lana on Pete's bed, realizing he only had his boxers on. He looked up at Pete, who was standing only ten feet away, shocked at what he saw. Clark was sitting up in his bed, covers draped over his lap with a fairly naked Lana sleeping next to him.

“Dude…” Pete said, shaking his head, “what did we do last night?

Clark pressed his fingers against his temples, “Ahh! Not so loud!” He looked towards the ground and saw his pants. “Can you hand me them?” he asked Pete groggily.

Pete bent down and picked up the carelessly thrown pants. As he did, the red meteor rock fell out of one of the pockets and rolled on the carpeting towards Clark. Before Clark could react, Pete stooped down and scooped the rock into his hand. “No, man! You didn't!” He looped back at Clark, tossing him the pants.

Clark snatched the pants in mid air, “Didn't what?” He hadn't seen the rock fall out.

Pete held up the rock, “Take the red kryptonite back. Dude, you know what this does to you.”

Clark stared at him blankly, “Then why'd you give it to me in the first place?”

Pete shook his head and looked away, “It was because we were drunk. Everything bad that could have possibly happened, happened.

Clark stood up, pulling up his pants, not quite sure of how to respond to his last statement. He lost his balance and tumbled to the floor. The fall was loud and thunderous. They both held their breath as Lana stirred in his bed.

“Chloe?” she mumbled, clearly not awake, “Is that you?” Instead of opening her eyes and sitting up, however, she rolled over and fell back asleep, exposing her bare back. They let their breath out and Clark stood up again, pulling his pants up the rest of the way.

“What now?” Pete asked.

Clark shook his head, “I have no idea.” They stared at her again, both lost in thought. “But if we stay here then it is going to make the pain that much more.”

Pete nodded, “Should we leave her a note?”

****

Clark and Pete walked in to the Torch to find Chloe sleeping on her books, attempting to do some unfinished homework. They glanced at each other, and then Clark walked over and set the cup of coffee they had bought for her next to her face..

She sat up, startled, by their presence and by the delicious smell of the cup of hazelnut coffee, with an extra shot of caffeine. “What? Did you spike it?” Chloe asked as she picked it up and started to greedily devour it. “Oh well, it is coffee after all.”

Clark sighed, “You do know that we never meant to drag you into that, don't you?”

Chloe stood up and brushed passed him, “No, of course you didn't mean to drug us, put my dad in the hospital or…or make me make a complete idiot out of myself.” She pressed the button to turn on the computer.

Clark and Pete exchanged glances. “Your dad is in the hospital?” Pete asked.

Chloe looked up and glared at them. “ Yes , he is. After you boys so kindly dropped ‘us' off at home, the police found my dad's car impaled against a tree. They traced it and ended up at our house. By the time they got there, I was in bed and my dad was…I don't know what he was doing.” She shut her eyes and looked as if she was trying to overcome the hangover as well remember what happened. “All I know is from a note and what I remembered. The police typed something out on the computer in the living room and had it flashing so I would read it when I got up.”

Pete chuckled, “They know you too well.” Chloe glared at him.

Clark stared intently at the floor, trying to put pieces together to come up with a reasonable explanation. “But why wouldn't they have woken you up if they were bringing your dad to the hospital?”

Chloe shrugged, “The note said that they didn't want to wait any longer than they had to. While they were securing him into the police car, Officer Mickels was typing up a report for me on the computer telling me what was going on. They said that the case was not severe enough to bother waking me up and that I'd be better off going to check on him after school.”

Clark nodded solemnly, “Do you know anyting else?”

Chloe nodded, “I called in this morning and they directed me to his room. The doctor said he was asleep and he only had a mild concussion. He only has to stay another night.”

Clark nodded slowly and softly gave her sympathy, “I'm so sorry.”

Chloe rolled her eyes, “Like you said, its not your fault. I was just trying to get someone to blame it on.” She walked over to the next computer and turned it on. Standing up straight, she hesitated momentarily before asking her next question. “Where…where's Lana?”

Clark and Pete tried not to look at each other, neither of them knowing how much she remembered. The hesitation gave Chloe an even stronger irritation. “I should have known. I'm not stupid, I heard the dare.” She looked away and mumbled, “I just can't believe she went through with it.” That made her completely disgusted. With Clark…with Lana …with alcohol….

Chloe looked up, with her back to the boys, and realized why the room had suddenly grown so quiet. Lana was standing in the doorway, terribly disturbed, yet quaintly assembled. She hadn't heard what they were talking about, but she had been thinking about how to make her entrance the entire way to school.

“Lana!” Chloe exclaimed, half-heartedly. “Hi!”

Lana walked in, without smiling she said “Hey…” and let her voice fade out. She quickly glanced at Clark, who was discovering how fascinating his shoes were.

Everybody stood in silence for what seemed like eternity. Their situation was so awkward. No one knew how much the other knew. Did Chloe and Lana remember that Clark jumped into the fire? His quick escapes? His transformations on to the red kryptonite? Did Lana remember more than he did on what *ahem* happened last night?

Chloe and Lana were still debating if their memory was deceiving them. If what they remembered were hallucinations or if they had actually happened. Everything seemed so surreal, looking back, like it had all been a dream.

Chloe rushed over and picked up her purse and coffee. “Thanks for the coffee…I have to go.” Without another word she brushed passed her three friends and bolted out the door.

Seconds later they heard three male voices boom down the hall: “Spongebob!” Then the pitter patter of six feet rushed down the hall, passed the Torch door and in the direction Chloe had gone.

Then they heard Chloe's famous groan and “Oh god!”

The three chuckled, in spite of themselves. Pete was the first to move. He walked over and handed the cup of coffee they had bought for Lana to her. Then glancing between them he said, “I know I should be here for moral support, or something, but right now you two have a major issue to work out.” He looked at Lana, “Seriously.” She nodded silently and he left, glancing at Clark one last time before disappearing around the corner.

Clark was still fascinated with his shoes. Lana, however, felt the coffee was interesting. She studied it carefully before she took a sip, then set it on the table.

“I thought the note was…uh, very subtle,” she said, smirking a little.

Clark lifted his eyes ever so slightly. “It was meant to be,” he said softly. He raised his eyes completely and their eyes locked.

She walked slowly over to him. He sighed and sat down on the edge of the desk. “To be honest, I don't know what happened.”

Lana shut her eyes and nodded, a small smile creeping to her lips. “That makes two of us.”

Clark raised an eyebrow, “Really?”

Lana looked a little skeptical, “Is that surprising?”

Clark shrugged, “No, I guess not. I was just wondering.”

Lana nodded, “I think what you did this morning was probably best. Who knows what I would have done if I would have woken up…with…with you still there.”

A short silence followed, both of them replaying their moment of acknowledgement back over in their heads.

“Are you okay?” Clark asked, wondering if that was a stupid question.

“Lana shrugged a little, “Physically, I'm so sore.” Clark nodded, understanding. “Emotionally…” a tear began rolling down her cheek, “it's starting to sink in.”

Clark winced, in pain for her in more ways than one. He stood up and cautiously walked over to her. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close. She cried softly in his arms, holding him tightly.

“I'm so sorry…” he whispered.

What mysteries there are here
Will remain what they are
We can't turn back the clock
We have come too far

What's been said has been said
What's done has been done
It may have been wrong
But it's gone with yesterday's sun

There are things I'll never understand
Mysteries I might never solve
Will we move on?
Or is this really love?

THE END