Fading Scars: Road to Recovery (3/?)
Jul. 15th, 2011 05:51 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
luminare91Title: Fading Scars
Rating: PG, some mature themes and mild language. Nothing too serious though. Subject to change.
Summary: Chloe keeps vigil at Oliver’s bedside, trying to deal with her emotions, after he is branded by Zod.
Warning: None at this point in time, but I only have a rough outline for the fic, so that may change. Also, because this fic is so rough, I have no idea how quick updates will be.
Spoilers: Season 9, specifically Sacrifice
Disclaimer: I don’t own any of the Smallville characters. I’m just playing with them. Please don’t sue.
Previous: Fresh Wounds Pt 1, Fresh Wounds Pt 2,
Banner by![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
nivieniv Thank you so much for the wonderful banner!!
Author’s Note: I’m so sorry for the long delay in this. I’ve hit a bit of writer’s block where it comes to my Chlollie fics, in particular Gift of Fate. That particular story has several plot lines coming together and I’m having trouble figuring out how to bring them all together. I’ll try to update as much as I can, but I’m not going to force anything. I didn’t get many reviews for the last update I posted, which made me very sad. Review, review, review and hopefully my muse will come back to me!
The Road to Recovery
Oliver was worried. Actually, he was damn near freaking out.
It had been a week and a half, almost two weeks, since he’d woken up in the hospital after being branded by Zod and two days since he’d been released. Despite little visible progress, Emil had said that he was healing as well as expected under the circumstances and had warned that his recovery was going to be slow. Oliver knew from experience that being laid up for weeks on end inevitably drove Oliver crazy, but this time he’d come to terns with the fact that he was going to be out of commission for a while.
No, what was bothering him was something else entirely. Something that had nothing to do with his recovery. He was worried about Chloe.
Waking up to find her sitting at his bedside had created the most amazing feeling inside of him. She’d been working so hard from the very beginning to trivialize their relationship that for her to do something that so obviously showed the depth of her feelings made her heart swell. Oliver had known from the start Chloe gun shy when to commitment, and understandably so, with her romantic history. He had taken no offense when she’d put up walls and tried so desperately to keep everything strictly casual. It was still nice to see proof that she really did care and that his attempts to break through her walls were working.
He known from the beginning that she shared his feeling, but he hadn’t realized that her feelings were as strong as his until he’d watched her the past week. In working his way into her heart, he’d learned how she coped with stress of any kind, particularly emotional stress. She dealt by distracting herself with work. Whenever Clark did something to annoy her or hurt her feelings, or whenever Lois got into trouble chasing down her latest story, Chloe threw herself into her work. Whether it was researching for the team’s next mission, monitoring the Kandorians, or writing some new code for Watchtower’s systems, Chloe buried herself in it until the emotions were drowned out. The fact that she hadn’t stopped trying to find Zod and get into her remote databases since Oliver had landed in the hospital -- despite repeatedly saying that she wouldn’t be able to access them until Victor helped her rebuild the hardware -- meant that her emotions were really beginning to overwhelm her. The pressure she was putting on herself, all for the sake of ignoring her feelings, was cause for some serious worry.
Oliver hadn’t realized just how bad things were until a few days had passed. At first, he’d been drifting in and out of sleep, barely conscious for more than an hour at a time, and he hadn’t noticed anything. She’d always made a point of putting her laptop away and focusing on him when he was awake. Once his mind had become a little less befuddled, he’d begun noticing the dark circles under her eyes, the unusual paleness to her skin, and the tense lines across her forehead. As he thought about it a little more, he’d realized that he hadn’t seen Chloe eat since he’d woken up. Aside from copious amounts of coffee, he hadn’t noticed her putting anything into her system. He couldn’t even say for sure that she was sleeping because he usually passed out before she did.
Emil had confirmed Oliver’s fears that Chloe wasn’t taking care of herself the day he was discharged.
***
“I’m releasing you on one condition,” Emil said without preamble, striding into Oliver’s hospital room.
Startled, Oliver looked up from the Queen Industries files he’d been reading. Emil stopped at the end of his bed, crossing his arms across his chest, and staring Oliver in the eye. It was amazing how intimidating the doctor could be when he was doing his job.
With exaggerated slowness, Oliver closed the file and set it aside. He hadn’t been expecting Emil to let him out anytime soon. As far as he could tell, there hadn’t been much progress in his condition.
Apparently having waited long enough for Oliver to say something, Emil jumped right in. “Hopefully, I don’t need to reiterate the importance of getting your rest and taking your meds on time. You’ve been injured often enough that one would think you’ve got the healing process down,” he added wryly, fixing Oliver with a disapproving stare. It was well known throughout the league that Oliver was the most uncooperative patient on the planet.
Properly chastised, Oliver nodded. “Don’t worry. Chloe gave me the ‘behave or else’ lecture on day one.”
“Which brings us directly to my condition.” The professional demeanor Emil had been projecting since walking into the room slipped slightly to reveal a worried expression. He ran a hand through his hair. “I’m concerned that Chloe hasn’t been taking care of herself. She’s been running herself ragged.”
Oliver frowned. “I know. But she brushes me off every time I try to talk to her about it.”
“I’m sure she does,” Emil sighed. “You’re the only person who stands a chance of getting her to take it easy. I’m hoping that if the two of you are back at the penthouse, she’ll be more likely to relax a little. Chloe is quite possibly more stubborn than you are and I understand that you might not have any success, but I expect you to try.”
“What makes you think she’ll listen to me?” Oliver challenged, his eyes narrowed. As far as the team knew, he had as much power over Chloe as the rest of them.
Emil rolled his eyes. “I’m not blind, Oliver. Neither am I an imbecile. I’ve been in and out since you were brought in here. Do you really I think I haven’t figured out what’s going on between you two? Even if I hadn’t been suspicious for weeks, it would have been easy to see.”
Slightly stunned, Oliver stared at the doctor. “You haven’t told anyone, have you?”
“Oliver as you know, discretion is a very large part of my work. I wouldn’t even have said anything to you if I wasn’t so worried about Chloe.” Emil crossed his arms again. “Are you going to do something about it or am I going to have to call in the league for an intervention?”
Still processing the fact that Emil knew about him and Chloe, Oliver answered slowly. “No. I’ll take care of it.”
Satisfied, Emil handed him a clipboard. “Excellent. Sign these and we can get you out of here.”
***
So far, Oliver’s success in getting Chloe to slow down had been limited. Emil had taken him off of strict bed rest, but he wasn’t up to chasing Chloe down. Victor had gotten back into town just a few hours after he’d been released and she’d been holed up in Watchtower, helping him get everything put back together. Oliver knew that since she was sure that he was out of the woods she felt obligated to do everything she could to stop the Kandorians. She’d come back to the penthouse the night before and run ops from her laptop. Nothing he’d said had been successful in convincing her to take a break and go to bed.
His phone chimed, signaling that he’d gotten a text message. Knowing that it would be Chloe, checking in once again, he grabbed it off the bedside table.
Going out to dinner with Lois then to Watchtower. Be back later. Don’t forget to take your meds.
Sighing, he typed out a response.
Yes mother. Hurry back. Miss you :(
He was about to drop the phone back on the table when he got an idea. Oliver hit speed dial and gingerly pushed himself up on the pillows.
“Dude, are you even allowed to be on the phone?”
He rolled his eyes. “Because holding the phone is really going to wear me out,” he said sarcastically.
Victor chuckled. “Well, you did wait until Chloe was out of Watchtower to call me. Obviously you’re doing something you’re not supposed to be.”
“I am not breaking any rules and I’m not avoiding Chloe for the reasons you think. Did you get a break between the mission and rebuilding Watchtower?” Oliver didn’t have time to beat around the bush.
“No, not really. Why?” Vic asked, obviously confused.
“Because you need to tell Chloe that you need a major recharge and that’s it’s going to be at least a few days before you can get back to work at Watchtower.”
“Why the hell would I do that? Do you have any idea how high strung she’s been about this? She’ll probably try to reprogram me! No way man. I’ll recharge later.”
“Vic, I’m not trying to get you on Chloe’s bad side,” Oliver said slowly, completely understanding why he was so worried. They’d all been subject to Chloe’s wrath before and it was not fun. “I’m asking you to do this for her sake. She’s literally wearing herself out. If she doesn’t get some rest, she’s going to burn out completely and crash. I’m worried about her and if the only way to get her out of Watchtower and into a relaxing bed is by lying to her, than so be it. I’ll take the bullet if she finds out.”
There was a short pause while Victor debated. Oliver crossed his fingers and prayed that Vic had noticed how tired and strung out Chloe was.
“Dude, if she comes after me, I’m blaming you,” Victor said darkly.
A grin split Oliver’s face. “I totally owe you.”
“Damn right you do. I’ll send Chloe a text and then I’m getting out of here before she gets her hands on me.”
Oliver chuckled. “I’ll let you know when it’s safe to come back.”
“Yeah, yeah. You do realize that she’ll probably kill you if she finds out you were behind this, right?”
“I’m willing to risk it,” Oliver said dryly. “But she’s going to kill herself if she doesn’t stop this.”
“Point,” Victor conceded. “I’m gonna finish what I’m doing and clear out of here. Good luck.”
“I’m gonna need it,” Oliver sighed, staring at the phone and the blinking “call ended.”
***
Coffee had stopped working two days ago, the day Oliver had finally been released from the hospital. She was still mainlining it like there was no tomorrow, but it wasn’t doing any good. She was running on vapors and it was only a matter of time before she crashed. Only her iron will was keeping her going. She actually hadn’t meant to end up back at Watchtower that night, but Lois had bailed on her and she hadn’t been ready to go back to the penthouse. That had been almost three hours ago.
Chloe rubbed a hand over her eyes, trying to focus on the computer screen that was blurring in front of her. She was exhausted, but she couldn’t bring herself to call it a night. There was too much that needed to be done. With Victor finally back in Metropolis they’d managed to cobble together enough of the hardware to allow them to access the database. It would still be slow until the entire system was operating again, but it would work in the mean time.
Taking another sip of her useless coffee, she narrowed her eyes and gazed more closely at the screen, expertly sifting through the data in the hopes of finding the Kandorians.
She was so focused that she didn’t even hear the soft chime signaling the arrival of another member of the team. It wasn’t until the doors flew open, startling her so badly that she almost dropped her coffee, that she realized she was no longer alone.
Gingerly wiping hot coffee off her pants, Chloe turned to yell at Clark, the only person who would be bursting into Watchtower at that hour. But it wasn’t Clark standing in front of her. It was Oliver.
He was dressed only in sweatpants, with no shirt. One arm was draped across his chest, over the bandage. His breathing was labored and with every breath, pain creased his face. But it did nothing to wash away the anger that shone from his eyes.
“What are you doing?” Chloe demanded worriedly. She quickly dried off her hands and started toward him. “You should be in bed, resting. You’re going to get an infection.”
“I’m fine,” he hissed leaning heavily against a table and glaring at her. “What the hell are you doing?”
She frowned in surprise and confusion, unable to understand why he seemed so angry. “I’m trying to track down the Kandorians and fix Watchtower,” she said slowly, almost sure that he’d known that’s what she was doing.
“Do you even care that you’re going to kill yourself?” Oliver snapped.
More confused than ever, she just stared at him. He took a shaky step toward her, silently cursing his weakness.
“You’ve barely slept in two weeks, I haven’t seen you eat anything, you’re constantly researching, and I’ve hardly seen you in two days. I’m worried about you, Chloe. And I’m not the only one.”
Chloe pursed her lips. It wouldn’t be the first time a friend had intervened because they thought she was spending too much time in Watchtower. First Dr. Fate had warned her that she was headed toward madness, then J’onn had said something to the same effect. Even Lois, who had no idea that Watchtower even existed, let alone that Chloe ran it, had complained repeatedly that Chloe spent too much time working. She’d thought that Oliver understood. The last thing she needed was a lecture from him.
“I’m fine,” she said shortly.
Oliver forced his temper back. He’d known when he left the penthouse to drag Chloe back with him that it was going to be a fight. She’d spent years building up her defenses. He hadn’t realized just how long she had been building them until he’d started breaking them down. Chloe had been using her work to hide her emotions since high school. It wasn’t going to be easy to convince her to take a step back, even if it was for her own good, and losing his temper wasn’t going to help things.
“Have you looked in the mirror lately? You’re a mess, Chloe. You can’t keep going like this. I know Emil’s spoken to you. Why won’t you listen?”
“Because I know my limits,” Chloe snapped. “I know what I can and cannot do. We’re on the brink of war with a psychotic, superpowered alien. I’m not about to take a nice, relaxing vacation.”
“That’s not what I’m suggest--”
“I’m the only one who knows how to access all of the databases, especially with them locked in the secure servers,” she ranted on. “I triggered the meltdown, so I have to go through the protocols to unlock the information. Without access to the databases, we don’t stand a chance of figuring out the Kandorian’s next move. I’m also the only one who stands a chance of getting Clark to see sense and help us. I can’t just leave and hope someone else will take care of everything for me--”
“Then don’t!” Oliver shouted, cutting through her monologue. Chloe stared at him, taken aback by the outburst.
Oliver staggered forward a little further. “Don’t you get it?” he asked softly, his voice tinged with desperation. “If you keep pushing yourself like this, you’re going to do yourself harm. You’re going to get sick, or pass out, or who knows what. If that happens, the team will be left without Watchtower.”
“I’ll be fine,” Chloe repeated, a little less firmly than before, as if she wasn’t sure that she believed it. “Even if something did happen to me, you’d manage. Victor could take over Watchtower. Or Emil could. Either one of them have the computer skills necessary.”
“Do you really think you’re expendable?” Oliver asked incredulously. He’d always known that Chloe was insecure, despite her outward confidence.
When Chloe didn’t answer, he grabbed her arms and pulled her around to face him. “You are not replaceable,” he hissed. “You’re the only person who can talk code with Victor. No one else can talk to AC about his environmental protests and fish rights without losing their mind. You put up with Bart’s flirting and get him to actually focus for more than two minutes. You, Chloe Sullivan, not anyone else, pulled my sorry ass out of the gutter and got me to be a hero again. We would be a mess without you.”
“No you wouldn’t,” she said bitterly. “The guys got along just fine without me around. One of them would have helped you if I hadn’t.”
“The guys may have gotten along, but you get them, you get us all on a level that no one else does. Why can’t you believe that?”
Chloe pulled herself free of his grip and looked away. “All I’m good for is sifting through data and keeping an eye on things from Watchtower and anyone can do that.”
“Then why is it that no one thought to run an op from the command center in my penthouse until you did?” Oliver challenged. “Why is it that whenever one of the guys has to cover for you they you can’t be our eye in the sky that they can’t wait to hand control back to you? It’s not because they’re bored. It’s because they can’t do everything you do. No one can put the pieces together the way you can. Someone else can sit in this room and watch these monitors, but no one can be there for us the way you are.”
Tears started to stream down Chloe’s cheeks, try though she might to hold them at bay. She wasn’t used to anyone telling her that she was worth something to them.
And Oliver wasn’t even finished. “You are my best friend, the person I trust with everything. You know me better than anyone, even the guys. No one is just going to replace you. That would be impossible.”
Her only answer was a quiet sob.
Once more, Oliver closed the distance between them and pulled her toward him, cradling her cheek with one hand. “You told me that if I went out on patrol in my current state and got myself killed the team would be a mess because they would blame themselves for not having my back. Don’t you realize that if you work yourself into an early grave, they’re going to blame themselves for not being here to help you? Bart will be heartbroken if something happens to you and if Victor thinks that he could have done something by being here instead of on his mission, he’ll never forgive himself. You’re just as important to the team as anyone else. I know you think that you’re helping all of us by working yourself to death, but you’re not.”
Chloe pulled away. She needed space. She needed to think, but Oliver didn’t let her. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her back around, his other hand going to her chin, forcing her to look him in the eye.
“The team needs you, Chloe. I need you. Don’t push us away and don’t hurt yourself for our benefit.”
She began to tremble as his words finally hit home and she realized that everything everyone had said to her had been right. Instinctively, Oliver folded her in his arms, pulling her against him. His chest protested when the movement put pressure on his burn, but he didn’t care. Chloe needed him and that was all that mattered.
Chloe sobbed into his chest. “I don’t know what else to do. This is the only way I know to help.”
Gently, Oliver cupped her face in his hands, wiping her tears away with his thumbs. “You can help by taking care of yourself. Come back to the penthouse with me and take a few days off. Get some rest. I’m not the only one who needs to heal here.”
“All right,” Chloe said softly. “I’ll tell Victor not to come in for a few days.”
A crooked grin slowly pulled at Oliver’s lips. “Actually, I talked him into taking a few days off. That was my original plan for convincing you to take a break.”
“What exactly made you think that risking your life would work better to convince me?” Chloe asked, a slight laugh in her voice.
“Drama queen,” he teased. “When you didn’t come back, I got pretty desperate. I was worried about you.”
She looked up at him guiltily. “I’m sorry. I just...this is all I know to do. I didn’t mean to worry you, especially now.”
“It’s worth it,” he murmured, pressing a kiss to her temple. “Let’s get out of here.”
Chloe nodded and pulled away long enough to shut down the computers. “Did you drive here?” she asked.
He let out a short, humorless chuckle. “I tried, but I couldn’t get behind the wheel. So I called Bart. When I told him that it was an emergency and he had to get me over here for your sake, he was more than willing to help.”
“Of course he was,” Chloe chuckled. “Well I have my car. We’ll take that. I’ll drop you off before I head back to Smallville.”
“No,” Oliver said abruptly. “Stay with me. I need to know that you’re actually taking it easy and letting yourself recover from everything that’s happened. I can’t spend the next three days worrying about you. If anyone asks questions, you can just tell them that you’re keeping an eye on me.”
She hesitated slightly. Truth be told, spending a few days with Oliver while they both healed sounded like just what she needed. Carefully looping her arm around his waist, she pulled him toward the door. “If you insist,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I’ll stay with you.”
They walked out of Watchtower in silence. Chloe helped Oliver into the car and drove to the penthouse. He leaned against her heavily as they walked across the lobby and over to the elevator. He was absolutely exhausted. Sleep was tugging insistently at his consciousness and he felt almost dead on his feet. Chloe helped him to his bed and gently laid him back on the pillows. He was nearly asleep, but still awake enough to notice when Chloe tried to leave the room. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her back.
“Where are you going?” he mumbled sleepily.
She raised an eyebrow. “To bed. Where else?”
“Stay,” he whispered. “Stay with me.”
Chloe shook her head, an anxious expression crossing her face. “No. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“If you don’t, I’m going to spend the entire night tossing and turning and wondering if you’re actually taking care of yourself,” he threatened.
Chloe pursed her lips. If she hadn’t believed that Oliver would do just that, she’d have told him to stop being a drama queen and would have just gone to bed. But she was well accustomed to his overprotective nature. If he thought that she was pushing herself too hard -- and he obviously thought she was, never mind the fact that he was right -- he really would spend the entire night worrying about her. Considering how that could affect his recovery, she was willing to bite the bullet.
It didn’t help that she was craving his touch as much as he seemed to be craving hers. Chloe’s strength of will was not what it used to be.
Sighing, she sank down on the edge of the bed and gave him a disgruntled look. “Fine. But if you try anything, and I mean anything, I will not only leave the bedroom, I will leave the penthouse and you’ll be on your own for the duration of your recovery. Got it?”
“Got it,” he said meekly, impressed with the magnitude of her threat. “So will you come to bed with me now?”
She rolled her eyes and kissed him gently on the lips. “Just give me a minute to change.”
Unable to suppress a grin, Oliver pulled her down for a harder kiss, only letting her go when they were both panting for breath. “Be quick,” he whispered huskily.
Her eyes were slightly unfocused, but Chloe nodded. She rose from the bed, slipping out of the room to change into her pajamas. He watched her go, a smile playing across his lips even as his eyes drifted closed.
***
Waking slowly, Chloe realized that she felt more rested that she had in a long time. Something was different. She couldn’t quite put her finger on way, but she wasn’t complaining. It would take torture to get her to admit it, but she’d been exhausted.
Sunlight was warming her face. She snuggled into the blankets, burying her face into what she thought was her pillow. Instead, she found that she was pressed against warm male skin. Chloe blinked in confusion and looked up to see Oliver watching her with a small smile on his lips.
“Morning,” he whispered.
In answer, she leaned up and gently kissed him on the jaw.
“How did you sleep?” he asked.
“Better,” she admitted. “You?”
“Best night’s sleep I’ve had in ages.”
There was a slight pause where they just laid together, enjoying the presence of the other. Oliver ran his hand up and down her arm. He’d missed being able to touch her like. She may have been right there beside him while he was in the hospital, but aside from holding hands, there had been nothing they could do. She wouldn’t allow anything else, aside from small kisses. He’d missed being close to her. Just as much as she’d missed being with him.
After a moment, Chloe broke the silence. “I’m sorry for worrying you,” she whispered. “I know I’ve been pushing myself too hard lately and I should have seen what that was doing to myself, to you, and to the team.”
“It’s not your fault,” he assured her. “Every member of this team has a problem with recognizing their own mortality. We should have realized that you weren’t exempt from that. I’m not the only member of the team that’s been wounded lately. The road to recovery is a long one. It will be slow, full of potholes, twists, and turns. But you won’t be going alone. We’ll healing together in body and spirit. If we’re lucky, we’ll come out even better than before.”
Chloe let out a happy laugh, moving closer to him and carefully wrapping her arm around his lower waist. “When did you come so poetic?”
“It’s always been there,” he grinned. “I just needed you to bring it out.”
She laughed again. Maybe he was right. Maybe she had been trying to do things on her own for too long.
Grinning up at the man that she was pretty sure she was falling in love with, Chloe realized that it didn’t matter if Oliver was right or wrong. What mattered was that she wasn’t alone anymore.
Rating: PG, some mature themes and mild language. Nothing too serious though. Subject to change.
Summary: Chloe keeps vigil at Oliver’s bedside, trying to deal with her emotions, after he is branded by Zod.
Warning: None at this point in time, but I only have a rough outline for the fic, so that may change. Also, because this fic is so rough, I have no idea how quick updates will be.
Spoilers: Season 9, specifically Sacrifice
Disclaimer: I don’t own any of the Smallville characters. I’m just playing with them. Please don’t sue.
Previous: Fresh Wounds Pt 1, Fresh Wounds Pt 2,
Banner by
nivieniv Thank you so much for the wonderful banner!!Author’s Note: I’m so sorry for the long delay in this. I’ve hit a bit of writer’s block where it comes to my Chlollie fics, in particular Gift of Fate. That particular story has several plot lines coming together and I’m having trouble figuring out how to bring them all together. I’ll try to update as much as I can, but I’m not going to force anything. I didn’t get many reviews for the last update I posted, which made me very sad. Review, review, review and hopefully my muse will come back to me!
The Road to Recovery
Oliver was worried. Actually, he was damn near freaking out.
It had been a week and a half, almost two weeks, since he’d woken up in the hospital after being branded by Zod and two days since he’d been released. Despite little visible progress, Emil had said that he was healing as well as expected under the circumstances and had warned that his recovery was going to be slow. Oliver knew from experience that being laid up for weeks on end inevitably drove Oliver crazy, but this time he’d come to terns with the fact that he was going to be out of commission for a while.
No, what was bothering him was something else entirely. Something that had nothing to do with his recovery. He was worried about Chloe.
Waking up to find her sitting at his bedside had created the most amazing feeling inside of him. She’d been working so hard from the very beginning to trivialize their relationship that for her to do something that so obviously showed the depth of her feelings made her heart swell. Oliver had known from the start Chloe gun shy when to commitment, and understandably so, with her romantic history. He had taken no offense when she’d put up walls and tried so desperately to keep everything strictly casual. It was still nice to see proof that she really did care and that his attempts to break through her walls were working.
He known from the beginning that she shared his feeling, but he hadn’t realized that her feelings were as strong as his until he’d watched her the past week. In working his way into her heart, he’d learned how she coped with stress of any kind, particularly emotional stress. She dealt by distracting herself with work. Whenever Clark did something to annoy her or hurt her feelings, or whenever Lois got into trouble chasing down her latest story, Chloe threw herself into her work. Whether it was researching for the team’s next mission, monitoring the Kandorians, or writing some new code for Watchtower’s systems, Chloe buried herself in it until the emotions were drowned out. The fact that she hadn’t stopped trying to find Zod and get into her remote databases since Oliver had landed in the hospital -- despite repeatedly saying that she wouldn’t be able to access them until Victor helped her rebuild the hardware -- meant that her emotions were really beginning to overwhelm her. The pressure she was putting on herself, all for the sake of ignoring her feelings, was cause for some serious worry.
Oliver hadn’t realized just how bad things were until a few days had passed. At first, he’d been drifting in and out of sleep, barely conscious for more than an hour at a time, and he hadn’t noticed anything. She’d always made a point of putting her laptop away and focusing on him when he was awake. Once his mind had become a little less befuddled, he’d begun noticing the dark circles under her eyes, the unusual paleness to her skin, and the tense lines across her forehead. As he thought about it a little more, he’d realized that he hadn’t seen Chloe eat since he’d woken up. Aside from copious amounts of coffee, he hadn’t noticed her putting anything into her system. He couldn’t even say for sure that she was sleeping because he usually passed out before she did.
Emil had confirmed Oliver’s fears that Chloe wasn’t taking care of herself the day he was discharged.
***
“I’m releasing you on one condition,” Emil said without preamble, striding into Oliver’s hospital room.
Startled, Oliver looked up from the Queen Industries files he’d been reading. Emil stopped at the end of his bed, crossing his arms across his chest, and staring Oliver in the eye. It was amazing how intimidating the doctor could be when he was doing his job.
With exaggerated slowness, Oliver closed the file and set it aside. He hadn’t been expecting Emil to let him out anytime soon. As far as he could tell, there hadn’t been much progress in his condition.
Apparently having waited long enough for Oliver to say something, Emil jumped right in. “Hopefully, I don’t need to reiterate the importance of getting your rest and taking your meds on time. You’ve been injured often enough that one would think you’ve got the healing process down,” he added wryly, fixing Oliver with a disapproving stare. It was well known throughout the league that Oliver was the most uncooperative patient on the planet.
Properly chastised, Oliver nodded. “Don’t worry. Chloe gave me the ‘behave or else’ lecture on day one.”
“Which brings us directly to my condition.” The professional demeanor Emil had been projecting since walking into the room slipped slightly to reveal a worried expression. He ran a hand through his hair. “I’m concerned that Chloe hasn’t been taking care of herself. She’s been running herself ragged.”
Oliver frowned. “I know. But she brushes me off every time I try to talk to her about it.”
“I’m sure she does,” Emil sighed. “You’re the only person who stands a chance of getting her to take it easy. I’m hoping that if the two of you are back at the penthouse, she’ll be more likely to relax a little. Chloe is quite possibly more stubborn than you are and I understand that you might not have any success, but I expect you to try.”
“What makes you think she’ll listen to me?” Oliver challenged, his eyes narrowed. As far as the team knew, he had as much power over Chloe as the rest of them.
Emil rolled his eyes. “I’m not blind, Oliver. Neither am I an imbecile. I’ve been in and out since you were brought in here. Do you really I think I haven’t figured out what’s going on between you two? Even if I hadn’t been suspicious for weeks, it would have been easy to see.”
Slightly stunned, Oliver stared at the doctor. “You haven’t told anyone, have you?”
“Oliver as you know, discretion is a very large part of my work. I wouldn’t even have said anything to you if I wasn’t so worried about Chloe.” Emil crossed his arms again. “Are you going to do something about it or am I going to have to call in the league for an intervention?”
Still processing the fact that Emil knew about him and Chloe, Oliver answered slowly. “No. I’ll take care of it.”
Satisfied, Emil handed him a clipboard. “Excellent. Sign these and we can get you out of here.”
***
So far, Oliver’s success in getting Chloe to slow down had been limited. Emil had taken him off of strict bed rest, but he wasn’t up to chasing Chloe down. Victor had gotten back into town just a few hours after he’d been released and she’d been holed up in Watchtower, helping him get everything put back together. Oliver knew that since she was sure that he was out of the woods she felt obligated to do everything she could to stop the Kandorians. She’d come back to the penthouse the night before and run ops from her laptop. Nothing he’d said had been successful in convincing her to take a break and go to bed.
His phone chimed, signaling that he’d gotten a text message. Knowing that it would be Chloe, checking in once again, he grabbed it off the bedside table.
Going out to dinner with Lois then to Watchtower. Be back later. Don’t forget to take your meds.
Sighing, he typed out a response.
Yes mother. Hurry back. Miss you :(
He was about to drop the phone back on the table when he got an idea. Oliver hit speed dial and gingerly pushed himself up on the pillows.
“Dude, are you even allowed to be on the phone?”
He rolled his eyes. “Because holding the phone is really going to wear me out,” he said sarcastically.
Victor chuckled. “Well, you did wait until Chloe was out of Watchtower to call me. Obviously you’re doing something you’re not supposed to be.”
“I am not breaking any rules and I’m not avoiding Chloe for the reasons you think. Did you get a break between the mission and rebuilding Watchtower?” Oliver didn’t have time to beat around the bush.
“No, not really. Why?” Vic asked, obviously confused.
“Because you need to tell Chloe that you need a major recharge and that’s it’s going to be at least a few days before you can get back to work at Watchtower.”
“Why the hell would I do that? Do you have any idea how high strung she’s been about this? She’ll probably try to reprogram me! No way man. I’ll recharge later.”
“Vic, I’m not trying to get you on Chloe’s bad side,” Oliver said slowly, completely understanding why he was so worried. They’d all been subject to Chloe’s wrath before and it was not fun. “I’m asking you to do this for her sake. She’s literally wearing herself out. If she doesn’t get some rest, she’s going to burn out completely and crash. I’m worried about her and if the only way to get her out of Watchtower and into a relaxing bed is by lying to her, than so be it. I’ll take the bullet if she finds out.”
There was a short pause while Victor debated. Oliver crossed his fingers and prayed that Vic had noticed how tired and strung out Chloe was.
“Dude, if she comes after me, I’m blaming you,” Victor said darkly.
A grin split Oliver’s face. “I totally owe you.”
“Damn right you do. I’ll send Chloe a text and then I’m getting out of here before she gets her hands on me.”
Oliver chuckled. “I’ll let you know when it’s safe to come back.”
“Yeah, yeah. You do realize that she’ll probably kill you if she finds out you were behind this, right?”
“I’m willing to risk it,” Oliver said dryly. “But she’s going to kill herself if she doesn’t stop this.”
“Point,” Victor conceded. “I’m gonna finish what I’m doing and clear out of here. Good luck.”
“I’m gonna need it,” Oliver sighed, staring at the phone and the blinking “call ended.”
***
Coffee had stopped working two days ago, the day Oliver had finally been released from the hospital. She was still mainlining it like there was no tomorrow, but it wasn’t doing any good. She was running on vapors and it was only a matter of time before she crashed. Only her iron will was keeping her going. She actually hadn’t meant to end up back at Watchtower that night, but Lois had bailed on her and she hadn’t been ready to go back to the penthouse. That had been almost three hours ago.
Chloe rubbed a hand over her eyes, trying to focus on the computer screen that was blurring in front of her. She was exhausted, but she couldn’t bring herself to call it a night. There was too much that needed to be done. With Victor finally back in Metropolis they’d managed to cobble together enough of the hardware to allow them to access the database. It would still be slow until the entire system was operating again, but it would work in the mean time.
Taking another sip of her useless coffee, she narrowed her eyes and gazed more closely at the screen, expertly sifting through the data in the hopes of finding the Kandorians.
She was so focused that she didn’t even hear the soft chime signaling the arrival of another member of the team. It wasn’t until the doors flew open, startling her so badly that she almost dropped her coffee, that she realized she was no longer alone.
Gingerly wiping hot coffee off her pants, Chloe turned to yell at Clark, the only person who would be bursting into Watchtower at that hour. But it wasn’t Clark standing in front of her. It was Oliver.
He was dressed only in sweatpants, with no shirt. One arm was draped across his chest, over the bandage. His breathing was labored and with every breath, pain creased his face. But it did nothing to wash away the anger that shone from his eyes.
“What are you doing?” Chloe demanded worriedly. She quickly dried off her hands and started toward him. “You should be in bed, resting. You’re going to get an infection.”
“I’m fine,” he hissed leaning heavily against a table and glaring at her. “What the hell are you doing?”
She frowned in surprise and confusion, unable to understand why he seemed so angry. “I’m trying to track down the Kandorians and fix Watchtower,” she said slowly, almost sure that he’d known that’s what she was doing.
“Do you even care that you’re going to kill yourself?” Oliver snapped.
More confused than ever, she just stared at him. He took a shaky step toward her, silently cursing his weakness.
“You’ve barely slept in two weeks, I haven’t seen you eat anything, you’re constantly researching, and I’ve hardly seen you in two days. I’m worried about you, Chloe. And I’m not the only one.”
Chloe pursed her lips. It wouldn’t be the first time a friend had intervened because they thought she was spending too much time in Watchtower. First Dr. Fate had warned her that she was headed toward madness, then J’onn had said something to the same effect. Even Lois, who had no idea that Watchtower even existed, let alone that Chloe ran it, had complained repeatedly that Chloe spent too much time working. She’d thought that Oliver understood. The last thing she needed was a lecture from him.
“I’m fine,” she said shortly.
Oliver forced his temper back. He’d known when he left the penthouse to drag Chloe back with him that it was going to be a fight. She’d spent years building up her defenses. He hadn’t realized just how long she had been building them until he’d started breaking them down. Chloe had been using her work to hide her emotions since high school. It wasn’t going to be easy to convince her to take a step back, even if it was for her own good, and losing his temper wasn’t going to help things.
“Have you looked in the mirror lately? You’re a mess, Chloe. You can’t keep going like this. I know Emil’s spoken to you. Why won’t you listen?”
“Because I know my limits,” Chloe snapped. “I know what I can and cannot do. We’re on the brink of war with a psychotic, superpowered alien. I’m not about to take a nice, relaxing vacation.”
“That’s not what I’m suggest--”
“I’m the only one who knows how to access all of the databases, especially with them locked in the secure servers,” she ranted on. “I triggered the meltdown, so I have to go through the protocols to unlock the information. Without access to the databases, we don’t stand a chance of figuring out the Kandorian’s next move. I’m also the only one who stands a chance of getting Clark to see sense and help us. I can’t just leave and hope someone else will take care of everything for me--”
“Then don’t!” Oliver shouted, cutting through her monologue. Chloe stared at him, taken aback by the outburst.
Oliver staggered forward a little further. “Don’t you get it?” he asked softly, his voice tinged with desperation. “If you keep pushing yourself like this, you’re going to do yourself harm. You’re going to get sick, or pass out, or who knows what. If that happens, the team will be left without Watchtower.”
“I’ll be fine,” Chloe repeated, a little less firmly than before, as if she wasn’t sure that she believed it. “Even if something did happen to me, you’d manage. Victor could take over Watchtower. Or Emil could. Either one of them have the computer skills necessary.”
“Do you really think you’re expendable?” Oliver asked incredulously. He’d always known that Chloe was insecure, despite her outward confidence.
When Chloe didn’t answer, he grabbed her arms and pulled her around to face him. “You are not replaceable,” he hissed. “You’re the only person who can talk code with Victor. No one else can talk to AC about his environmental protests and fish rights without losing their mind. You put up with Bart’s flirting and get him to actually focus for more than two minutes. You, Chloe Sullivan, not anyone else, pulled my sorry ass out of the gutter and got me to be a hero again. We would be a mess without you.”
“No you wouldn’t,” she said bitterly. “The guys got along just fine without me around. One of them would have helped you if I hadn’t.”
“The guys may have gotten along, but you get them, you get us all on a level that no one else does. Why can’t you believe that?”
Chloe pulled herself free of his grip and looked away. “All I’m good for is sifting through data and keeping an eye on things from Watchtower and anyone can do that.”
“Then why is it that no one thought to run an op from the command center in my penthouse until you did?” Oliver challenged. “Why is it that whenever one of the guys has to cover for you they you can’t be our eye in the sky that they can’t wait to hand control back to you? It’s not because they’re bored. It’s because they can’t do everything you do. No one can put the pieces together the way you can. Someone else can sit in this room and watch these monitors, but no one can be there for us the way you are.”
Tears started to stream down Chloe’s cheeks, try though she might to hold them at bay. She wasn’t used to anyone telling her that she was worth something to them.
And Oliver wasn’t even finished. “You are my best friend, the person I trust with everything. You know me better than anyone, even the guys. No one is just going to replace you. That would be impossible.”
Her only answer was a quiet sob.
Once more, Oliver closed the distance between them and pulled her toward him, cradling her cheek with one hand. “You told me that if I went out on patrol in my current state and got myself killed the team would be a mess because they would blame themselves for not having my back. Don’t you realize that if you work yourself into an early grave, they’re going to blame themselves for not being here to help you? Bart will be heartbroken if something happens to you and if Victor thinks that he could have done something by being here instead of on his mission, he’ll never forgive himself. You’re just as important to the team as anyone else. I know you think that you’re helping all of us by working yourself to death, but you’re not.”
Chloe pulled away. She needed space. She needed to think, but Oliver didn’t let her. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her back around, his other hand going to her chin, forcing her to look him in the eye.
“The team needs you, Chloe. I need you. Don’t push us away and don’t hurt yourself for our benefit.”
She began to tremble as his words finally hit home and she realized that everything everyone had said to her had been right. Instinctively, Oliver folded her in his arms, pulling her against him. His chest protested when the movement put pressure on his burn, but he didn’t care. Chloe needed him and that was all that mattered.
Chloe sobbed into his chest. “I don’t know what else to do. This is the only way I know to help.”
Gently, Oliver cupped her face in his hands, wiping her tears away with his thumbs. “You can help by taking care of yourself. Come back to the penthouse with me and take a few days off. Get some rest. I’m not the only one who needs to heal here.”
“All right,” Chloe said softly. “I’ll tell Victor not to come in for a few days.”
A crooked grin slowly pulled at Oliver’s lips. “Actually, I talked him into taking a few days off. That was my original plan for convincing you to take a break.”
“What exactly made you think that risking your life would work better to convince me?” Chloe asked, a slight laugh in her voice.
“Drama queen,” he teased. “When you didn’t come back, I got pretty desperate. I was worried about you.”
She looked up at him guiltily. “I’m sorry. I just...this is all I know to do. I didn’t mean to worry you, especially now.”
“It’s worth it,” he murmured, pressing a kiss to her temple. “Let’s get out of here.”
Chloe nodded and pulled away long enough to shut down the computers. “Did you drive here?” she asked.
He let out a short, humorless chuckle. “I tried, but I couldn’t get behind the wheel. So I called Bart. When I told him that it was an emergency and he had to get me over here for your sake, he was more than willing to help.”
“Of course he was,” Chloe chuckled. “Well I have my car. We’ll take that. I’ll drop you off before I head back to Smallville.”
“No,” Oliver said abruptly. “Stay with me. I need to know that you’re actually taking it easy and letting yourself recover from everything that’s happened. I can’t spend the next three days worrying about you. If anyone asks questions, you can just tell them that you’re keeping an eye on me.”
She hesitated slightly. Truth be told, spending a few days with Oliver while they both healed sounded like just what she needed. Carefully looping her arm around his waist, she pulled him toward the door. “If you insist,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I’ll stay with you.”
They walked out of Watchtower in silence. Chloe helped Oliver into the car and drove to the penthouse. He leaned against her heavily as they walked across the lobby and over to the elevator. He was absolutely exhausted. Sleep was tugging insistently at his consciousness and he felt almost dead on his feet. Chloe helped him to his bed and gently laid him back on the pillows. He was nearly asleep, but still awake enough to notice when Chloe tried to leave the room. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her back.
“Where are you going?” he mumbled sleepily.
She raised an eyebrow. “To bed. Where else?”
“Stay,” he whispered. “Stay with me.”
Chloe shook her head, an anxious expression crossing her face. “No. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“If you don’t, I’m going to spend the entire night tossing and turning and wondering if you’re actually taking care of yourself,” he threatened.
Chloe pursed her lips. If she hadn’t believed that Oliver would do just that, she’d have told him to stop being a drama queen and would have just gone to bed. But she was well accustomed to his overprotective nature. If he thought that she was pushing herself too hard -- and he obviously thought she was, never mind the fact that he was right -- he really would spend the entire night worrying about her. Considering how that could affect his recovery, she was willing to bite the bullet.
It didn’t help that she was craving his touch as much as he seemed to be craving hers. Chloe’s strength of will was not what it used to be.
Sighing, she sank down on the edge of the bed and gave him a disgruntled look. “Fine. But if you try anything, and I mean anything, I will not only leave the bedroom, I will leave the penthouse and you’ll be on your own for the duration of your recovery. Got it?”
“Got it,” he said meekly, impressed with the magnitude of her threat. “So will you come to bed with me now?”
She rolled her eyes and kissed him gently on the lips. “Just give me a minute to change.”
Unable to suppress a grin, Oliver pulled her down for a harder kiss, only letting her go when they were both panting for breath. “Be quick,” he whispered huskily.
Her eyes were slightly unfocused, but Chloe nodded. She rose from the bed, slipping out of the room to change into her pajamas. He watched her go, a smile playing across his lips even as his eyes drifted closed.
***
Waking slowly, Chloe realized that she felt more rested that she had in a long time. Something was different. She couldn’t quite put her finger on way, but she wasn’t complaining. It would take torture to get her to admit it, but she’d been exhausted.
Sunlight was warming her face. She snuggled into the blankets, burying her face into what she thought was her pillow. Instead, she found that she was pressed against warm male skin. Chloe blinked in confusion and looked up to see Oliver watching her with a small smile on his lips.
“Morning,” he whispered.
In answer, she leaned up and gently kissed him on the jaw.
“How did you sleep?” he asked.
“Better,” she admitted. “You?”
“Best night’s sleep I’ve had in ages.”
There was a slight pause where they just laid together, enjoying the presence of the other. Oliver ran his hand up and down her arm. He’d missed being able to touch her like. She may have been right there beside him while he was in the hospital, but aside from holding hands, there had been nothing they could do. She wouldn’t allow anything else, aside from small kisses. He’d missed being close to her. Just as much as she’d missed being with him.
After a moment, Chloe broke the silence. “I’m sorry for worrying you,” she whispered. “I know I’ve been pushing myself too hard lately and I should have seen what that was doing to myself, to you, and to the team.”
“It’s not your fault,” he assured her. “Every member of this team has a problem with recognizing their own mortality. We should have realized that you weren’t exempt from that. I’m not the only member of the team that’s been wounded lately. The road to recovery is a long one. It will be slow, full of potholes, twists, and turns. But you won’t be going alone. We’ll healing together in body and spirit. If we’re lucky, we’ll come out even better than before.”
Chloe let out a happy laugh, moving closer to him and carefully wrapping her arm around his lower waist. “When did you come so poetic?”
“It’s always been there,” he grinned. “I just needed you to bring it out.”
She laughed again. Maybe he was right. Maybe she had been trying to do things on her own for too long.
Grinning up at the man that she was pretty sure she was falling in love with, Chloe realized that it didn’t matter if Oliver was right or wrong. What mattered was that she wasn’t alone anymore.
