Hope

06 - pills

Clark let the kiss linger for a moment before reluctantly pulling back. Alex pulled back as well, her eyes slowly flickering open to look at the other man, confusion and relief both evident in the hazel brown. Their faces were still close, and Clark's hand didn't leave Alex's jawline. Eventually, the silence was broken by both of them chuckling, both bodies moving forward until their foreheads collided, giggling like children.

"I'm not going to lie.. I've wanted that for a while." Alex confessed in a whisper, receiving a small laugh from the man across from her.

   "I could say the same." Clark responded, "what time is it, anyway?"

"Um.." Parrish whispered before glancing down at the watch on her wrist, "its 1:57 in the morning." Clark raised his eyebrows, not realizing how much time passed as they sat there talking. He then started packing his things up, preparing to leave for the day. Alex helped, by throwing the foil away, and leaving the plate with the trash as well. They both cleaned their area and walked out of the building together, going towards their home.

As they walked up to the hallway outside of their two apartments, the two shared glances, each of their pinkies linked together subconsciously. Soon, their feet shifted to where they were facing each other and Clark's hands roaming Alex's forearms, the woman tracing hers up Clark's shoulders and to his neck.

"Thank you for bringing me dinner, Miss Parrish."

"Don't mention it, Mr. Kent. I'll see you tomorrow." She said, but just as Alex pulled away to go into her home, Clark pulled her back in for a last kiss before he flashed a smile and walked to his door, unlocking it and walking in. Parrish remained in the hall for a moment, slightly stunned, before walking into her own apartment to end the day.

The next morning, Alex woke with a yawn, seeing that it was indeed Saturday, and she had the weekend off. Unfortunately, Clark didn't. He had work today, which meant Alex would have to find something to keep herself busy with until at least 5:00 PM. She slowly slipped out of bed, only to be greeted by the bright sun, shining through the open windows that Parrish had forgotten to close the night before. Blocking the light from her eyes with her hand, Alex quickly pulled the translucent blinds over the glass to make the light less intense on her freshly woken eyes.
After a nice cup of coffee and a healthy breakfast, Alex was fresh and awake. Suddenly, her phone glowed, showing a text message from Clark.

C: Good morning :)

A: Morning. Ready for work?

C: As I'll ever be. What about u?

A: I have off today.. gonna do some shopping. How about we leave together?

C: Sounds like a plan. I'll be out in a few

A: Ok see ya :)

C: <3

The conversation ended with that, and Alex started getting ready. Since today would be a causal day, Alex chose to wear something more comfortable; skinny jeans, a tank, and a long cardigan, some trendy moccasins to finish it. She gathered her things in her purse. Phone: check. Wallet: check. Keys: check. ID: check. Alex made a checklist in her head, collecting everything she needed and making sure she had her necessities. The woman even brought her badge, incase she really needed to use it, though she never had to.

Soon enough, an audible knock came at the door, prompting Alex to shoot her head up suddenly. She quickly swung the bag over her shoulder and opened the door to see her neighbor standing there with a friendly look on his face. This brought a smile to Alex's, and she walked out, locking her door behind her as she and Clark made their way down to the elevator, again, their pinkies linked subconsciously.

"So.. shopping?" Clark stated in a slightly amused tone. Clearly, the man didn't take Alex as much of a shopper.

"Don't judge me. I need stuff for my house, like toilet paper and shampoo."

"Of course, of course." Clark said, surrendering, "hey, I was actually wondering..."

"If I could make you dinner again?" Alex teased.

"No, no" he chuckled, "if I could take you out to dinner?"

"Mm... I'd love that, Clark."

"Does Wednesday sound good? At eight?"

"In the middle of the week? Well— it's fine with me. It's a date."

Clark smiled and nodded his head, leaning down and gently bumping his head against Alex's in an endearing form of affection, which the agent thought was precious. The elevator eventually reached the ground floor after picking up a few more passengers, and as the doors opened, people rushing out for work poured out into the lobby. Out of which, Clark and Alex walked, pinky to pinky to the Daily Planet office. As soon as they reached the front doors, Alex knew it was her cue to get going.

"I'll see you later then. Have a good day." She said, the light breeze brushing her natural waves back slightly.

   "You too. We're getting coffee after." Clark said with a gentle smile before reaching over to push some of Alex's hair behind her ear. Parrish raised her eyebrows for a moment but couldn't help but chuckle shyly at she sweet gesture. They both shared a hug before walking their separate ways. Alex walked off, back to the apartment building, where she got into her car and drove to the local mall, beginning her days of shopping.

Two hours into shopping, Parrish had bought only one bag of things, which was a relief to her. She needed to know exactly where and how she would use something before she bought it, otherwise she wouldn't waste hard earned money. It was simply her mentality. Now, she took a 'break' from home shopping, when she noticed a nice blouse in the window of a shop she had never been to. As Alex was looking through the clothes, her phone started to ring, so she lifted the phone to see that it was her boss that was calling.

"Parrish? What's going on?"

"I... don't understand what you're talking about, sir?"

"Don't play dumb with me, Parrish. I received an anonymous tip that you gave mess to the New York Senator, Ms. Haas."

"I... sir.."

"If you give me some excuse, so help me, Parrish."

He wasn't lying. However, it was a matter of life or her close friend's death. She had already lost a friend by trying to defy the voice that called her over and over, during the time of the bombing two years earlier; the one that made her as famous as she was in the present. Alex had no idea who told him, or why they would. That was all in the past, and she couldn't let another one of her friends die because of something she didn't do. The line went dead after that, and suddenly, Alex wasn't in a shopping mood anymore.