I think there has always been an air of Lana as "object" and thing to be "collected." The pilot has Whitney acting very possessive (violently so) over her but it's his inattention that drives her away. There was also the whole bizarre speech about Magnetic!boy where she praises him for honesty despite all the things he could've done to her. There's a strong strain of narcissism in Lana that almost demands attention and I think she'll tolerate a lot of really peculiar stuff (especially w/o a backup) for quite a while.