Silent Obsession [109]

Journalism Room

The sound of keyboard keys echoed through the empty room. Chloe typed quickly, her eyes fixed on the computer screen. The coffee beside her was already cold, untouched.

The door creaked softly.

Alicia Baker entered.

Chloe didn't look up immediately, but she felt her presence. A sweet scent mixed with the soft sound of footsteps.

"Chloe, do you have a minute?"

She sighed, turning her head to face Alicia.

'Great. What does she want now?'

"If it's about a news scoop, I can fit it into tomorrow's edition."

Alicia smiled, but there was something in her eyes. A curious glint.

"It's not about the paper. It's about Clark."

The name hung heavy in the air.

Chloe blinked slowly, closing the file tab on her computer.

'Of course it's about him.'

"Clark?"

Alicia tilted her head, leaning on the desk.

"Yeah. I wanted to know... do you still talk to him?"

Chloe leaned back in her chair, arms crossing over her chest.

"Why are you asking?"

Alicia smiled, fidgeting with her fingers.

"Well, you two dated, right? At least, that's what I heard."

Chloe's stomach turned slightly.

'Knew this was going to happen sooner or later.'

"Yeah. We dated."

Alicia leaned in a little more, watching every reaction.

"And why did you break up?"

The tension rose a level.

Chloe forced a small smile.

"It happens. People change."

Alicia bit her lower lip, her eyes sharp.

"But you two still get along?"

Chloe turned her head to the side, staring at the computer screen.

'This is going too far.'

"We're friends."

Alicia raised her eyebrows, as if analyzing the answer.

"So you wouldn't mind if I… got close to him?"

The air grew heavy.

Chloe blinked once. Then again.

Her chest tightened in a strange way.

'Ah. So that's it.'

"You're interested in Clark?"

Alicia didn't look away.

"I think he's... fascinating."

Chloe's heart beat faster, but her face remained expressionless.

'Great. Another one.'

"Well, nothing's stopping me from telling you whatever you want about him."

Alicia smiled.

"Great! So, is he single?"

Chloe took a deep breath.

'Choose your words carefully, Sullivan.'

"Depends on what you consider single."

Alicia frowned, leaning in a bit more.

"What do you mean?"

Chloe pretended to organize some papers on the desk, keeping a neutral expression.

"Clark met a girl during the break. The kind of woman that makes all the other guys drool."

Alicia's smile disappeared instantly.

"What girl?"

Chloe looked at her casually, but was amused inside.

"Diana. Gorgeous. Brunette. One of those women who looks like she walked out of a fashion magazine, you know?"

Alicia pressed her lips together.

"So he's with her?"

Chloe tilted her head slightly, observing the subtle change in the other girl's face.

'That's bothering you, isn't it?'

"Let's just say they spent a lot of time together. He seems... very comfortable around her."

Alicia clenched her fists briefly.

"Oh. How interesting."

Chloe smiled inwardly, but her expression stayed calm.

"Well, you said he's fascinating. But honestly? So is she."

Alicia looked away, clearly irritated.

"She doesn't seem like the type of girl he'd go for."

Chloe held back a laugh.

'Oh, now we have opinions about it?'

"Well, he chose her."

Silence hung in the air. Alicia took a deep breath, trying to collect herself.

"That doesn't mean I can't try."

Chloe leaned back in her chair, arms crossed.

"Of course not. But... good luck with that."

Alicia narrowed her eyes but said nothing more.

She turned and left the room, the sweet scent still lingering in the air.

Chloe waited for the door to close before letting out a long sigh.

'Great. Now there's another one in the way.'

She grabbed the cold coffee, took a sip, and made a face.

'At least I had a little fun.'

---

School Hallways

The hallways were crowded, voices blending into a constant hum. Students came and went, carrying books, laughing, living their routines without noticing the storm inside her.

Alicia walked slowly, her steps controlled, but her heart racing.

'Clark Kent.'

The name vibrated in her mind like an electric current.

She saw everything.

The fire devouring the workshop. The man in flames collapsing before him. The way he moved... as if time obeyed only him.

Clark wasn't normal.

She tightened her grip on her backpack strap.

'No one else noticed. No one else saw what I saw.'

She knew Smallville had its secrets. But Clark was different. He wasn't just a bystander in that scene. He was absolute power amid the chaos.

Students walked past her without noticing the intense glow in her eyes.

'He's incredible. Perfect.'

Her chest tightened. Her jaw clenched.

'And now, he's with her.'

The name came with bitterness.

Diana.

An unknown shadow. A woman who appeared out of nowhere and simply took the place that should've been hers.

'He doesn't even know me. Yet.'

The rage bubbled in her stomach.

She had no right. Diana had no right.

Alicia bit her lower lip.

'But I saw something no one else did. I know what he's capable of.'

She slipped her hand into her jacket pocket, feeling the cold metal against her fingers.

The flash drive.

Every click of the camera, every image captured that night was in there.

Clark destroying Jason Dante. Clark resisting fire like it was nothing. Clark, the most extraordinary man to ever set foot in this town.

Her heart pounded hard.

'No one deserves him. Not like this.'

She leaned against the nearest locker, taking a deep breath.

Diana was an illusion. A wrong piece in the puzzle.

But she wasn't.

She saw what no one else saw.

She knew what he really was.

She would be perfect for him.

A group of girls walked past her, laughing at something one of them showed on her phone. Alicia ignored them, her mind spinning in a chaotic storm.

Clark Kent.

A living secret.

And she was closer to the truth than anyone else.

Her fingers tightened around the flash drive in her pocket.

'I can make him notice me.'

She pushed her shoulders back, lifted her chin.

The hallways were still noisy. The world spun on, unaware of what was about to happen.

But Alicia had already made her decision.

Diana wouldn't last long.

Clark was hers.

He just didn't know it yet.

Her thoughts spun like sharp gears inside her mind.

'But what if he resists?'

The idea irritated her. Clark shouldn't resist. He needed to see her as the only choice.

'Distractions need to disappear.'

She walked past a group of students laughing loudly about some new rumor, their annoying voices barely reaching her ears. None of that mattered. Only he mattered.

Diana was a problem.

So was Chloe.

Her blood boiled every time she remembered the casual tone Chloe used when she talked about him, like she still had a special bond with Clark.

'I saw the way she acts. How she looks at him when she thinks no one's watching.'

Alicia took a deep breath.

'Chloe needs to be out of the way too.'

Her fingernail scraped against the cold metal of the flash drive in her pocket.

'But how?'

She didn't want to take risks. She couldn't afford mistakes. Diana and Chloe were obstacles, but the world saw both as strong women, respected by Clark.

The disappearance of either wouldn't go unnoticed.

Her eyes scanned the distracted students in the hallway. Their lives were so... ordinary.

'If I do this the right way, no one will suspect a thing.'

Diana could have an accident.

Something out of anyone's control.

A poorly placed ladder. A car with failed brakes at just the wrong moment. An unexpected attack from a faceless stranger.

Something... final.

Chloe?

She was clever. Curious.

'Curiosity can kill.'

She worked alone in the journalism room late at night. Always buried in her investigations, always poking around where she shouldn't.

A small fire in the newsroom.

Or maybe a robbery.

A thief who came looking for something and found more than he bargained for.

Alicia's chest rose and fell slowly.

It would be so easy.

Would Clark suffer?

Maybe for a while. But he'd forget.

He'd look at her. At the only person who truly understood who he was.

Her face warmed.

'I can do this. I can give him what he needs.'

The hallways seemed emptier now.

Alicia kept walking, feeling her destiny taking shape around her.

It was only a matter of time.

Clark Kent would be hers.

He just didn't know it yet.

To read 10 chapters ahead, go to:

patreon.com/22Mirko22

Also, check out my other fanfic:

DXD: The Awakening of Phenex

Reincarnation, power, and a burning legacy — don't miss it!