This is just the right blend of waffy, fluffy and yet serious. Dan was unceremoniously kicked to the curb.
Clark and Lois are starting off this new level of their relationship with class (dinner at a lovely restaurant), sass (make out session on Lois' couch...ouch!) and dash (Clark stopping them before things get out of hand). Your writing is so very descriptive, I can actually 'see' inside the cab as they hold hands, nervous and excited about how the evening will unfold. The waiter was proper and unobtrusive as they ordered dinner. Cannot believe Lois ate pasta!
The conversation was sparkling and fun, exactly the way a first date should be.
After Clark departed for the evening Lois' investigative mind went into overdrive:
Her heart raced as she imagined it. She adored Clark’s parents. They had been unfailingly kind to her over the last two years. They had welcomed her into their home and into their family. Clark loved his parents so much. He would never do anything that would put them in danger. Which meant this was a secret he guarded ferociously.
If he was giving her the gift of this secret, he was doing it not just because he trusted her but because he was ready to commit his heart and his future to her.
Once he told her, she would know his secret forever. He might as well be proposing, because that’s what this was. He was binding them together in this secret for life. Whatever happened between them…for the rest of her life she would have to keep his secret for him. She would have to lie for him. Cover for him. Protect him.
So happy she accepted this deduction immediately rather than complaining about how dare he keep the truth from her. What a refreshing changes of pace! Kudos! I am so very glad you have rejoined the boards!