"What's Metropolis like?' said Lana to Chloe as she sat down to watch TV with her in the living room. A cheesy horror movie was interrupted by an even cheesier car dealer commercial.

"I miss it. It's a major sprawl but it's full of all sort of fun things to do . . ." Then Chloe sighed. "You ask me all the time about the city. If you're so curious about it, why didn't you move with Nell? Her husband couldn't have sucked that much."

"I do get letters from Nell asking me if I want to come. I am tempted, too. But the truth is that I'm a coward. I'm a total chicken."

Chloe frowned. "What are you so afraid of?"

Lana laughed nervously. " Here in Smallville, I'm somebody, you know. But once I go to Metropolis, well, who am I? I dreamed for years of going there and making it big. But the minute I'm offered the opportunity, I hide . . . I mean, what's so special about me? Nothing, really."

"Well, you're smart and pretty. You run a business, all by yourself."

"Please . . . I get a ton of help running the business. Lex hired some people to back me up. He wants to make a profit, you know. As for the smart and pretty, maybe in small town high school, I stand out a little but . . . Maybe, I was just trying to figure something out. I've tried cheerleading, volunteering, dating . . . I feel like I'm still searching for something that makes sense. That's why I envy you, Chloe."

"Envy me? Why?"

"You know who you are and want to be. You want to be a reporter in Metropolis. You have a goal and a dream. You were even an intern. I imagine a job like that is almost impossible to get."

"But you're the one Clark likes."

"Only because he thinks I've got it all together. Truth be told, I think he's even more lost than I am. As much as I like him, I want someone more stable . . ."

"Never heard you talk like this before."

"I . . . drank a couple wine coolers. They're really good. You can barely taste the alcohol."

"Oh, my God! I can't believe this." Chloe turned to her housemate and smelled her breath. "Wow, you really did drink some booze."

"Yeah, Lana Lang is wasted." Lana giggled again. "Even finding my biological dad didn't really help. The only real constant has been you. You've been great."

"Hey, thanks. You should tell me what brand of wine cooler you got because I'd like to get you some more."

Both the girls laughed this time.

"Honestly, Chloe, I think I'd like to go back to being just a regular girl."

"Then just be one. It's really not that hard."

"Want a wine cooler?"

The End