A/N: Okay, so this is what happens when my brain refuses to stop talking…I end up with this bizarre idea. It told me the beginning and end, but it forgot about the middle, so I had to pick at my brain to come up with the middle. It may not be my best work, but it was fun to write. Just a light-hearted little Chlollie fic, because we could all use them sometimes. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I disclaim ownership of anything that doesn't belong to me.
Like Coffee
Coffee was her favorite beverage in the entire world. When it came to drinks, she'd pick coffee over just about anything. Maybe her lifestyle had something to do with it; the fact that she was up far into the night, more often than not, and it kept her alert. Amidst the world of heroes, she needed to be alert. Or maybe it was that familiar aromatic smell, and the way it made her smile contently when the permeating scent tickled her nostrils. Or maybe it was the taste, sweet, thanks to the spoonfuls of sugar, but leaving her mouth with that bitter hint in the end. Whatever the reason, she loved coffee, and of that she was positively sure…
The first time she had met Oliver, he'd left her mouth in wow. He was gorgeous, and she wasn't thinking that lightly. Back then, she hadn't carefully taken in his appearance…maybe the fact that Lois was dating him had something to do with it. However, the first time she really etched every detail of his profile was when he first rescued her; the night atop the Daily Planet when Black Canary attacked her. Chloe a thief? That was also the first time she cataloged the color of his eyes. They were brown, but they weren't just brown.
Amidst his absence, her over-analyzing-self was left to rightfully link the color of his eyes. She tried the similes. Chocolate was up first. The brown of his eyes was like that of milk chocolate? It didn't fit right. Maybe they weren't close enough yet? When she had looked into his eyes that fateful night, something had clicked, they weren't just brown…yeah, she'd established that pretty quickly, but they had this initial piercing stance. When she had looked into them, really looked into them, they softened. Chocolate was soft and sweet initially. That simile just didn't fit quite right.
She didn't even know why she was obsessing over the coloration of his eyes anyhow. It wasn't as if she liked him. She had Jimmy, and she never obsessed over his eyes, or Clark's. Clark's were a soft baby blue. She knew that. There wasn't much room for analyzing there. Besides, Lois could tell her the exact definition of Clark's eyes in her rants. At this, Chloe giggled. She liked to believe it was just her curious nature, her previous reporter-self still lurking loose in her somewhere that wanted her to define Oliver's eyes. But then things went awry, their friendship began to blur, and not in a positive way. Even when he did look at her amidst all the anger, the resentment, they somehow still softened, and once more, she was left contemplating.
Her thoughts then drifted to soda. Soda fizzed. And his eyes did kind of make her feel bubbly…if that made sense? In Chloe's mind, it did. Soda carried this bubbly sweetness, so that didn't fit either. Besides, soda reminded her of summer. She loved soda in the summer, not all year long, or when she relaxed. Oliver wasn't exactly a chilled out person. No, he was more uptight.
Then she set up this devious plan to pull him out of the brink of destruction. He was her friend, and she cared for him deeply. Besides, she couldn't bear to lose another familiar face in her life. He was a constant, and with Clark telling himself Lois was his only link to humanity… Chloe let out a sigh. She did always enjoy their banter, her and Oliver's. Maybe that's why they had formed such an easy friendship that stemmed from something professional. Oliver was smart, she didn't deny that for a second, plus he had an Ivy League education to prove it. She knew he'd figure it out eventually, but when he showed up at her second favorite coffee stop with the queen chess piece, he surprised her. He claimed his victory, but that night, she claimed one with herself, and they both had that queen chess piece to prove it.
She looked into his eyes that afternoon, really looked. When he first stepped beside her, they had that piercing quality that made her heart stop for the briefest moment. Then, he relayed the events of his horrible encounter with Roulette only to find that Chloe was trying to prove to him that he still had that hero in himself, and his pools of brown softened. They weren't just brown. In fact, they were more like the color of coffee. At first they looked almost bitter, but when she got a taste, she found them to be sweet. Plus, they had that kick that kept her alert-well, at least towards Oliver.
Coffee was her favorite beverage. She knew coffee inside and out. How could she have not thought of coffee in the beginning? It was probably due to the fact that they weren't always close. Now, every time she did look into his eyes, she knew brown wasn't what she would just find. There was a whole meaning behind the way he looked at her. He loved her unconditionally, and that coffee simile proved it. Besides, she knew him better than she knew anyone else.
"What're you doing there, Professor?"
She looked up at the sound of his voice, setting down the novel in her hand. She hadn't really been reading it anyhow. Her green orbs must have glossed over that sentence about a dozen times already. A contented smile creased her lips as her nostrils caught the lingering scent of her favorite beverage in the whole wide world. It may have been summer, but this drink, she could have in any weather.
"Is that coffee?"
"That nose is wonders, Sullivan," he stated, stepping out onto the balcony of his penthouse apartment. He held forth one of the two ceramic mugs in his hand.
She took it with a smile, her book falling from her lap, forgotten.
Oliver, however, knowing Chloe's obsession to keep books in their original pristine condition, picked it up. "Reading?"
Her eyes turned to him. "It's a breezy summer afternoon, and I had the day off…"
"Thanks to me," he interjected.
Chloe frowned. "What did you want me to do?"
"Spend time with me."
"I am spending time with you," she pointed out, "you were at a meeting up until 15 minutes ago."
Point noted. He scooted towards her, setting down the book. "That's why I came in peace bearing gifts."
"You brought coffee." Hello, nose, remember?
"In your world, that is the ultimate gift."
"Touché."
Oliver chuckled. "So what were you doing, besides reading?"
"Contemplating," she mused.
He raised a brow, watching her trace the rim of her mug.
"The color of your eyes."
"They're brown." After all, he'd been writing that down since kindergarten.
Chloe shook her head, her smile broadening into that knowing-grin. "Not just brown, Ollie."
"Really?" Now, he was intrigued. He had always categorized them as just brown.
She looked at him. Really looked at him, causing him to hold the urge to kiss her then and there, but he couldn't for she was analyzing him. Oh boy, he hated being over analyzed, but with Chloe, he'd make an exception. She'd make him make an exception.
"They're brown like coffee."
"Coffee?" he lifted his mug towards his lips.
Chloe nodded, looking rather proud of herself.
"Okay, but I have to admit, my eyes are a bit lighter than the color of coffee."
"The color is only half of it, and it's a pretty close comparison."
"You got a whole description of my eyes from coffee?" He wasn't exactly sure if that was good thing or bad thing.
She nodded, and then she drifted into her description of coffee. It was bitter, but sweet, with that kick of caffeine to keep her alert, and well, his eyes were like that. The coffee simile worked.
Oliver chuckled before his lips creased into a soft smile, and simultaneously, his eyes softened too, lighting up with warmth. Chloe looked into his orbs of brown, really looked into them. They weren't just brown, they were like coffee.
He couldn't take her staring at him like that any longer, so he kissed her. She tasted like coffee, just like she always did.
Chloe giggled when he told her. Who knew coffee factored into their relationship so heavily.
"So do I have to analyze the color of your eyes now?"
Chloe raised a brow, amused. "They're green."
"They're not just green, Chloe…"
A/N
: Okay, thoughts?