Previously on Seed of Doubt...
"Come on, Super Wuss! Fight me!"
Corben ran at Clark and jumped. Clark was surprised by the man's agility and the height he was able to attain. Clark maneuvered out of the way, staying out of the Kryptonite's sphere of influence. He had to think. Normally, he would just find something to bind the criminal with and either wait for the police to show up or deliver him directly to the closest police station. He couldn't do that with Johnny. He was too strong and would likely break any bonds Clark could find, and securing Johnny would bring Clark into contact with the Kryptonite anyway. He could hear Lois on the phone with 911, but he couldn't risk Corben being free when the police arrived. Officers would be hurt or killed, Clark didn't doubt.
Johnny continued to shout insults at Clark, but they fell on deaf ears as Clark sought for something, anything to securely and peacefully subdue the cyborg. He spied some cable in a construction zone just down the block. It was worth a shot, he reasoned, so, in the span of a heartbeat, he raced to the cable, grabbed it, and, though the position was slightly awkward, used a fair amount to wrap up Johnny. Corben roared in rage, flexed his artificial muscles, and snapped the cable as though it was so much silk. Clark frowned. He hadn't expected the cable to fully incapacitate Corben, but he'd thought it would buy him more than half a second to think.
Sirens began to wail in the near distance. Whatever Clark was going to do, he had to do it quickly. Johnny went to the van he and the other men had used when they'd kidnapped Clark earlier that morning. He began to try to lift it. Clark just reacted. He landed and called out to Corben.
"You want me? Come and get me," he taunted.
Corben left the vehicle and rushed toward Clark. That was his mistake. Clark sent a blast of his heat vision at Corben's feet. The metal that comprised his entire body began to melt as Clark kept the heat flowing. He stopped only when Corben was a melted puddle of metal from the knees down. Then he sent a blast of his super breath at the molten metal that had pooled on the sidewalk, instantly cooling it and hardening it in place, ensuring that Corben wasn't going anywhere.
Satisfied, Clark gave Corben a wide berth and went to meet the first of the officers to arrive on the scene. To his delight, he found that it was Bill Henderson. That was good news, with the sensitive nature of the Kryptonite. He knew he could trust Henderson with the knowledge that the deadly green stone was in the area. He also knew that he could walk away from the scene of the fight without having to worry about the Kryptonite's disposal. Henderson would make sure that it got to Dr. Klein at S.T.A.R. Labs.
It didn't take him long to give Henderson a run down on what had occurred and of the threat of the Kryptonite. On that point, Henderson mutely nodded, a silent vow that he, and he alone, would be the one to handle the situation. Clark clasped the man's shoulder in unspoken thanks. He flew off then, giving the appearance that Superman had other things to attend to. Of course, once he knew that no one would be watching the skies, he sped back down into the building. He changed at super speed back into his normal Clark attire, gathered up the evidence he'd meant to save for use in ensuring that Rollie and Emmet Vale never saw the outside of a prison again, and exited the building.
Lois flung herself into his arms as soon as she saw him. "I was worried about you," she whispered in his ear as she subtly nodded toward the partially melted form of Johnny.
"I'm alright," he promised her. "Are you okay?"
"Now that I know you're safe, I'm fine."
"You should probably go to your sister," Clark murmured to her just before she could plant a kiss on his lips. With his super hearing, he could easily hear the younger woman's sobs as Henderson removed the Kryptonite battery in Johnny's chest, causing the entire machine to power down once and for all.
"Mmm," Lois replied. Then, pulling away, "Yeah, you're probably right."
"I'll talk to Henderson, then grab a cab home. Judging from what I can hear, you might be with Lucy for a while. See you tonight?"
"I'll bring the pizzas," Lois promised. "Rest up. You've been through hell today. And I'm just grateful that you're still here, alive, with me."
"Thanks to you," Clark acknowledged. "If you hadn't found me...I'm afraid things would have gone very differently today."
"I'd never let that happen," Lois said, and although her voice held confidence in it, he could also detect a hint of relief that she'd managed to save him.
Clark kissed her again. "I know. Now, go on. I'll see you later."
"Okay. I love you," she said, stroking his cheek with her hand.
"I love you too."
***
The week of Clark's suspension passed by at a frozen snail's pace. He did what he could to stay busy, but even most of the criminals in the city seemed to be taking it easy. Lois kept him constantly abreast of what was going on at the Planet, which both soothed him as he attempted to help her research during the nights and pained him because he couldn't be there beside her as she tracked down stories and leads.
Two days after Clark's rescue from the psychotic cyborg and his builders, Lois called him at home from the Planet with the list of names the Metropolis Technical Institute had furnished, in hopes of identifying the bomber. They needn't have bothered. The following morning, the bomber struck again, only this time, the device they placed managed to go off while Clark was assisting at a major car accident. Three people were killed and a dozen others injured. But the bomber, a twenty year old man by the name of Dustin Hacker, had foolishly waited around to see if his target, his thirty-one year old - and, Clark had to admit to himself, attractive - female professor had been hit by the explosion.
Clark easily recognized the suspect from the photographs the school had given them. He swiftly apprehended him and passed him off to the police officers at the scene, then turned his attention to those who were injured. There was nothing he could do for the dead, so they became his last priority. He did what he could to assist, flying those he could to the hospital, though there were four with injuries so severe that Clark was afraid to move them himself. He didn't want to do more harm than good, so he waited with those last four victims until the paramedics could arrive. Three of the four left by ambulance. The fourth was allowed to be flown by Clark, once the EMTs decided that the man's injuries were not as bad as Clark had feared they were.
It gave him a distinct feeling of satisfaction when he later learned that all of the injured people were expected to make a full recovery, and that the original target, Charlene Bosworth, had suffered from nothing more than a sprained ankle, a broken arm, some cuts and a light burn that would soon heal. She'd been lucky. She'd been further away from the blast radius of the bomb and had gotten the majority of her injuries when the blast had thrown her off her feet.
Lois spent each night with him, sometimes only for a few hours before heading off to her own apartment, sometimes the entire night, going over leads and research with him or just watching movies with him until she either fell asleep in his arms on the couch or stumbled off, bleary eyed, to his bed. Those hours with Lois were the best parts of Clark's days, as always. Twice, to kill some time during the day, he took to walking the streets of Metropolis and found himself wandering into jewelry shops. After inspecting the engagement rings at five different stores, he had a good idea of the one he wanted to one day buy for Lois. Truth be told, it was agony for him to walk out of that store empty-handed, but he knew it wasn't the right time yet. He and Lois had only just gotten their relationship back on track, after the revelation of Superman's true identity had almost completely derailed it.
He would have to be content to wait.
Finally, mercifully, the day came when he could rejoin Lois at the Planet. It felt so good to step into the lobby of the building that morning, seeing, hearing, smelling all the familiar elements of his dream job. It was funny, he reflected to himself as he made himself a cup of strong bullpen coffee. He'd come to Metropolis, drawn to the city by the Planet. But it wasn't the Planet that kept him rooted to the city. It was the woman he'd met while at the Planet who'd given him a reason to stay and make Metropolis his home. Though he loved the paper dearly, he could just as easily work for any other publication. What he couldn't do without was his partner, his best friend, the woman he loved.
Walking through the newsroom, he found himself to be somewhat of a hero, especially to his female coworkers. It seemed that many, if not most, of them had been the recipient of Ralph's crudeness, but hadn't had the nerve to say anything because of his connections to the people who actually owned and ran the paper. Still, it had made him extremely nervous when Ralph's uncle called him upstairs to talk to him. His heart in his throat and his stomach firmly coiled into a knot, he'd ridden the elevator up to the top floor.
He'd nearly fallen out of his chair when Mr. Warrens apologized to Clark on behalf of Ralph. Ralph, Mr. Warrens explained, had been a source of trouble and worry for a while, but the things Ralph had said to and about Lois had finally given him the opportunity he'd been seeking to get rid of Ralph. To maintain peace within the family, he hadn't fired the man, but had permanently reassigned him to the Planet's satellite office in Cleveland. When Ralph had protested and threatened a lawsuit against Clark, Mr. Warrens had sworn to back Lois and Clark up in a countersuit for harassment. Ralph had immediately become sullen and withdrawn, and had offered no further resistance to the mandatory move.
Clark had left the meeting unsure of how to feel. On the one hand, he was elated that he still had a job at the Planet. On the other, he hadn't meant for any of this to happen, least of all to force a coworker, however disliked the man was, to be forced to relocate. He'd spent the remainder of the day in a mental funk, and his initial eagerness to return to work was replaced by an eagerness to go home and collect his thoughts.
Still, there was nothing Clark could do. He couldn't even offer his apologies to Ralph. He never saw the man back in the bullpen after that. He had to accept the situation for what it was. Life moved on. The days passed swiftly by, now that Clark was once more fully engaged in his job, righting the wrongs of the world with Lois by his side.
"Morning, Clark," Lois said one morning, about a week and a half after Clark had officially been reinstated to his duties at the Planet.
"Hi, Lois," he said, looking up from his computer screen.
"You're here early."
"I didn't sleep well," he said, shrugging.
"Was it...?" She motioned with her hand, making her now-familiar gesture for Superman.
Clark nodded slightly. "A little. But even when things were quiet, I still couldn't get to sleep. It was just one of those nights, I guess. Anyway, I thought I'd come in and get the finishing touches on the Luthor trial story."
"Thanks."
"It's just about finished. I'll email it to you when I'm done, if you want."
"No, I'll just hang out here, if that's okay."
"Sure," Clark said as he stood to fetch Lois a chair. Now that she was a couple of weeks into her second trimester, the small bump of her stomach was becoming more obvious, though she could still hide it beneath certain types of shirts.
"It looks good so far," Lois announced a few minutes later as she read over what Clark had written. "I can't believe the verdict will be in soon. I feel like...like there should have been months more of this to endure."
"I thought so too. But the DA's office is really pushing to get this one closed. Personally, I don't mind. I think they've done a commendable job of exposing all of the atrocities Luthor's committed or ordered."
"I think so too. On the other hand, the verdict and sentencing can't come soon enough for my liking. I just want everything related to Lex to finally be completely in the past."
"Sounds good to me," Clark said with a smile. "So, what do you think? I was toying with the ending. It feels...I don't know. Incomplete?"
"It does," Lois agreed. The phone on her desk rang. She rolled her eyes. "I should get that."
"Take your time. I'm going to play around with this some more, okay?"
"Okay. Thanks."
Lois pushed herself up off the chair and stretched her back before heading to her desk. She picked up the phone on its fourth ring, just before it could transfer to her voicemail. Clark heard her say "Hi, Mom," before tuning out her conversation and focusing on the elusive conclusion to their article.
Half an hour later, as Clark found himself lost in a different article, Lois returned to his desk. Clark looked up, startled, his focus on his work so intent that he'd managed to tune out the entire bullpen. He gave her a smile, which she returned with a tentative one of her own.
"What's wrong?" he asked, instantly concerned by the way the normal sparkle in her eyes was subdued.
"I sort of...well...got us roped into a dinner with my parents on Friday night," she said, shifting uncomfortably as she toyed with a pen on Clark's desk.
"Your...parents? As in, both of them? At the same time?" Clark asked, incredulous. "I thought they vowed never to be in the same place at the same time again, barring one or the other's funeral."
"They did. But they're both in the city tomorrow and I thought, since I still haven't told either of them about their impending grandchild, that it might be better just to tell them both at the same time. I just told them that I wanted them to meet you. Am I crazy?"
Clark chuckled lightly and stood to kiss her forehead. "No, you're not crazy. Brave, is more like it. Given the history between you and your parents, I give you credit for wanting to tell them together. What about Lucy? Is she coming?"
Lois sighed. "I wish. She's got class tomorrow night from six to nine, then an early shift at the diner in the morning."
Clark nodded. "I see. Well, I'll be right there with you. Everything will be fine, I promise."
***
"Hi, Mom. Hi, Dad," Lois said as she and Clark approached the table where the elder Lanes were sitting in an uncomfortable, awkward silence.
"Hi, Princess," Sam said, standing and kissing her cheek.
"I still don't understand why you insisted that he be here," Ellen complained, nodding in Sam's direction.
Lois ignored the comment, choosing, instead, to make the introductions. "Clark, these are my parents, Ellen and Sam. Mom, Dad, this is Clark."
Clark shook hands with the Lanes. "It's nice to finally meet you."
"Lois' partner, right?" Ellen asked as Clark pulled out Lois' seat for her.
"More than that," Lois answered as she sat. "I told you, Mom, Clark and I are dating now. We have been, for a couple of months now."
"Right, right," Ellen said dismissively.
Clark took the seat next to Lois. At the round table, it meant that Ellen and Sam were sitting next to one another. That made Clark nervous. From what he understood about the Lanes' relationship, it was safer to leave dynamite next to a bonfire. He only hoped they would set their differences aside once Lois told them about their grandchild-to-be.
"So, can I ask you?" Ellen continued. "What in the world is this dinner all about tonight? Not that I don't love seeing my daughter, but, having him here too?" She again nodded in Sam's direction.
"I know, Mom. If it had been possible, I would have seen you and Daddy separately. But this is the only weekend when I could get together with both of you. So, please, I'm begging you both, just...get along for the next couple of hours, okay?"
"I can be civil," Ellen said pointedly.
"Don't look at me," Sam grumbled. "I can handle a little dinner."
Lois shot Clark an almost pleading look. He could almost hear her thoughts in that look. It's already starting, her eyes seemed to say. Can we just go home? He gave her a soft, loving smile and took her hand as it lay in her lap. He was just wondering how and when Lois was going to broach the subject of her pregnancy when the waitress came to take their order - medium rare steaks for Clark and Sam, veal parmesan for Ellen, and shrimp scampi over linguini for Lois. With Lois opting just for ice water with lemon to drink instead of wine or a caffeinated beverage, Clark did the same, hoping to keep any suspicions at bay until Lois was ready to tell them her news.
For a while, they made small talk about their jobs, the weather, the articles Lois and Clark had recently been working on. Sam was interested in the Corben case, having dabbled in the realm of bionics and robotic limbs for patients who'd lost an arm, a leg, or the use of their muscles due to sports injuries, accidents, or disease. The appetizers arrived and were eaten, and still Lois made no move to mention the baby.
"So, Lois, did I tell you about Shannon Marsden? She's moving back into town. Split from her husband," Ellen said as the waitress reappeared with their meals and whisked away the plates from the appetizers.
"That's...uh...very sad," Lois stammered, clearly uncomfortable. "But, um, wasn't she cheating on him the entire time?"
"That's what's being said," Ellen said by way of confirmation. "Now everyone's wondering if her three kids are all really Hank's or not. I'd get a lawyer if I were him. I wouldn't be responsible for another man's child."
"I don't know," Clark ventured, hoping he wasn't being too brazen. The waitress reached around him to refill his water glass. "Even if they aren't his, I'm sure he loves them. How old are they?"
"Ten, six, and five," Ellen and Lois said with one voice.
Clark nodded. "He's been their father for a long time, even if they aren't his own."
"I still wouldn't be paying to raise someone else's kid," Ellen said, shrugging. "Let the real father or fathers step in and do it. If she even knows who they might be."
Clark could see that Lois was having a hard time keeping it together. Her hands flexed into tight balls, relaxed, then flexed again in her lap. He could hear her pulse begin to increase. He lightly touched her hand with his own to silently tell her that everything was okay. Ellen could have whatever opinions she wanted. It didn't mean that he was in agreement with her.
"I mean, really!" Ellen continued. "I always did say the youngest looked more like the mailman than he does Hank. What kind of woman does that? Or man, for that matter? Putting a family at risk like that?" She looked pointedly at Sam.
"Actually, Mom, Dad, there's something Clark and I want to tell you," Lois said as Sam fumbled for an answer. She waited until they both looked up at her. "We are, uh...we're having a baby."
Ellen's fork loudly clattered to the plate as it slipped from her fingers, her mouth hanging open. Sam coughed as he choked on a piece of steak, and he thumped himself hard in the chest. Once the offending piece of meat had been swallowed, he sipped his soda slowly as small coughs continued to rock him.
A painful silence stretched on at their table for a good ten seconds - the longest ten seconds of Clark's entire life, while all around them, the air was filled with the buzzing of conversation from all the other tables.
"You...what?" Ellen finally asked, as though needing confirmation that what'd she'd heard was true.
"You heard me," Lois said softly. "I'm pregnant."
"Are you sure?" Sam asked, sounding as if he wished Lois was wrong.
Lois opened her purse and handed both of her parents each a photo from her most recent ultrasound. Ellen and Sam took them in mute shock.
"Pretty sure," Lois replied as they looked at the images.
"Oh, Lois, you didn't..." Ellen said sounding disappointed and shaking her head. Then, looking again at the tiny human in the photograph, "Wait. How far along are you?"
"About seventeen weeks," Lois said, not making eye contact and sounding embarrassed. "Give or take."
Ellen's eyes widened in surprise for a split second before narrowing in anger in a perfect mirror to what Clark had often witnessed in Lois. "And you're just telling me this now?" she asked in an accusatory tone.
"Clark and I...no, that's not right," Lois corrected herself. "I had a lot of decisions to make. I wasn't sure if I was even going to keep this baby. I was having trouble even believing that this had happened for a while. Part of me wished that, if I ignored thinking about it, it would just," she waved her hand vaguely, "disappear. And I knew that, well, I knew it would be a disappointment to you and Daddy."
"A disappointment?" Sam asked, sounding like a man woken from a deep sleep and still half dazed.
Lois nodded. "I'm not married. I know that's always been something that you and Mom found important. Marriage first, then the babies."
"Wait, wait, wait," Ellen said, putting both hands up to the level of her chin and waving them from side to side. "Seventeen weeks?" She appeared to count backwards on her fingers for a few seconds, then frowned. "And you said Clark is the father? But seventeen weeks puts things right around the time..."
"Of Lex," Lois finished for her. "Yeah, it does."
"But that would mean...Lois! I raised you better than that!" Ellen eyed Clark harshly, as if she suspected him of being some deviant who'd taken advantage of a freshly assaulted and fragile woman.
"It's not her fault," Clark said, gently snaking his arm around Lois.
"Obviously not fully," Ellen returned sourly.
"It's not Clark's fault either," Lois said in a tone of appeasement. "Remember how Clark and I wrote those articles on that Miranda woman, with the pheromone spray?"
Sam nodded. "Sure." That came as no surprise to Clark. The man was a scientist - of course he would be interested in such stories.
"Well..." Lois shrugged. "She sprayed the newsroom before we were even aware of what she was up to. She got Clark and I right in the face with that foul witch's brew. Things...happened. It just...so happened to occur right after the incident with Lex."
"So...how do you know Clark is the father?" Ellen asked pointedly.
"Because I'll be the one raising this child with Lois. Even if Lex is the biological father, he'll never be a part of this child's life," Clark said in a steady but authoritative voice, brooking no room for an argument.
"Between you and your sister, you're going to kill me," Ellen complained with a sigh as she brought her hand up to her forehead.
Lois' face went red. "Mom, it took me a long time to get to a place where I am happy to be expecting this baby. You don't have to like it, but that's how things stand. And if you can't be positive about it, you don't have to be involved in his or her life. I won't tolerate the negativity and I certainly won't tolerate any snide comments about Clark. Don't look at me like that. You don't have to voice what you're thinking. I can see it plain enough in your eyes. You think Clark's promise to stand by me and raise this child is a lie, that, like so many other sleazy men out there, he's going to run. You're wrong. I love him and I trust him."
Ellen looked as if her daughter had just slapped her across the face. The embarrassment that crept into her features was unmistakable. She cleared her throat softly and drank her iced tea, perhaps to buy herself some time to extract the foot from her mouth. Finally, she shook her head.
"My baby's having a baby," she said in awe. "But...are you sure this is what you want?"
"We're sure," Lois stressed. "I know this is hard for you, Mom. But Clark and I...we want this."
Ellen nodded mutely.
"Are you getting enough medical treatment?" Sam said awkwardly, seemingly at a loss as to what else he could say.
Lois smiled tenderly. "Yes, Daddy. I have a wonderful doctor."
Sam nodded contentedly. "Do you know if it's a boy or girl yet?"
"Not yet," Clark answered. "But we're having an in-depth ultrasound in a few more weeks. We should be able to find out then, if the baby's cooperating."
"I don't think I want to know," Lois said, her statement shocking Clark. He'd thought for sure that Lois Lane, world renowned solver of puzzles, would be squirming as the sex of their baby remained a mystery.
"Really?" he asked.
"It might be nice," Lois said, "to find out when the baby's born. Don't you think?"
"If that's what you want, I think it's a great idea," he told her with a warm and genuine smile.
She returned the smile, but the unspoken "And no peeking" thought was evident in her eyes. He gave her the slightest of nods - his solemn promise that he wouldn't be sneaking a look. The look in her eyes changed and Clark knew that she'd understood what he was telling her.
"So, does this mean that you two are uh going to uh..." Sam stammered, gesturing vaguely.
"Not at the moment," Lois said.
"Which doesn't mean it might not happen," Clark interjected. "Sam, Ellen, I love your daughter. She's my heart and soul. And I know what you must be thinking about me - the guy who might have gotten their little girl pregnant. Wherever our relationship goes from here...nothing will change the love that I have for her and this baby. Believe me, nothing would make me happier than if one day Lois allowed me to be her husband. But the truth is, whatever happens, this baby will have more love than he or she will know what to do with. This whole thing...this family Lois and I have created - are creating - whether or not we ever say vows to one another, it's still sacred to me. It's not something I'll ever just walk away from."
Ellen opened her mouth to speak, looking less than convinced, but Lois cut her off.
"Mom, you should listen to Clark. Trust me. You don't know him like I do. When he gives his word, he means it."
Ellen reluctantly nodded. "If you say so."
"I do," Lois said firmly, ending the discussion.
"Well then," Ellen said, seeming to swallow whatever retort she'd had, "I guess...I guess I should say congratulations. To both of you," she amended immediately. "Do you have any names chosen?"
Lois chuckled, in what sounded like Clark to be relief. "No, not yet. We haven't even really started the process. Things have been so crazy between the two Lex Luthor trials, that Metallo character kidnapping Clark to draw Superman into a fight, and about two and half dozen other things, that we haven't had the time. Not to mention that up until a couple of weeks ago, I wasn't even sure if I saw myself as a mother, so entertaining the idea of brainstorming names was laughably ridiculous in my mind."
"And you're sure now. About your desire to be a mother and about all the changes this baby will bring to your life."
"Yes, Mom."
"Well, if you need any help..." Ellen said, leaving the offer hanging in the air.
"You'll be the first to know," Lois said to appease her.
"Lois," Sam said gently, "you know you can count on me too, if you need anything."
"Oh, please," muttered Ellen beneath her breath.
"I know, Dad," Lois said, but Clark wasn't sure she fully believed what she was saying. Something was off in her voice, though he couldn't quite place it.
"Well, I uh...the food's getting cold," Ellen said, seemingly at a loss as to what else to say.
"I'm proud of you," Clark leaned in to whisper to Lois.
She answered him with a small, relieved smile and a pat on his leg. Gratitude for his presence gleamed in her eyes. Clark gave her a matching smile, then turned his attention to his steak. He was thankful for the way Lois had defended him, but the sting of Ellen's disbelief that he'd hold true to his promises to stand by Lois and the baby was still fresh. It colored his mood, making him quieter than usual and it altered the flavor of his meat, making the once thick and juicy steak taste closer to thin cardboard. He forced the food down anyway and would have forgone dessert if Lois hadn't insisted that he split a molten chocolate lava cake with her.
The conversation became, if possible, even more strained between the four of them. Clark contributed when he could, in as friendly and open a tone as he could, but he felt like both of Lois' parents had him under some kind of invisible microscope, watching and judging him as the night wore on, now that they suspected him of impregnating their daughter, especially on the heels of Lex's assault.
It was a relief for Clark when he finally paid the bill. He helped Lois see Sam and Ellen safely into cabs to take them to their respective hotels. Then he and Lois headed back to his place for a while, for a chance to relax and recuperate from the ordeal.
"Well," Lois said, as she stepped through the doorway of Clark's apartment, "that was certainly...uh..."
"Interesting?" he supplied helplessly.
"Not exactly the word I was looking for," Lois said, turning to him with a grin. "But, at least that's over."
"You have to admit, it went better than we'd anticipated," Clark said, shedding his light jacket and hanging it on a peg by the door once the night was shut out behind them.
"That's true," Lois said, handing him her own jacket. "No food was thrown, there wasn't any screaming, and no one got barred from ever stepping foot in that restaurant ever again."
Clark grinned broadly. "So, overall, a successful night."
That made her laugh. "Yeah, I guess so." She moved to the living room and flopped down on his couch. "I give you a lot of credit though. Most men would not have been as calm or confident in sharing the news that they might have gotten their girlfriend pregnant - especially not to the girl's parents."
Clark sighed and sat beside her. "Lois, we've been through this..."
"Yeah, yeah, I know. One in a trillion. That doesn't mean there isn't a slight chance," she said, waving off his concerns. "Even so, what you did tonight with me...that couldn't have been easy. And I'm sorry for the way my parents sort of, well, scrutinized you for the rest of the night."
"Well, it wasn't comfortable," he admitted, "but, honestly, I'm not sure that it was all that difficult, telling them. I think it was harder for me to tell my own folks. We might have fudged the truth a little tonight, saying that there was a possibility of me being the biological father. But when I told my folks, I really thought I had a good chance of being the one to get you pregnant."
"The perfect son, admitting to a mistake," she said, though her tone was gentle and free of reproach or teasing.
Clark smiled a half smile. "Kind of. More like...they knew, to a certain extent, the limits I'd placed on myself. And I knew the morals they'd instilled in me - among them, a hope, if not a belief, that I'd be having children inside the parameters of a marriage. Admitting that I'd broken all those guidelines, even if I wasn't quite myself that night..." He shrugged and allowed his voice to trail off.
"Anyway, at least that's over," Lois repeated. "Everyone knows now. And everyone is still speaking to the two of us. I guess that can be considered a success. Though, I think, for my parents at least, the real happiness will set in once the baby is here."
"Could be."
"Mmm." Lois leaned into his body, resting her head against his shoulder.
"Did you want to stay here tonight?" Clark asked after several minutes of silence had lapsed.
"Huh? Oh. Sorry. I was just thinking...I'm getting close to halfway through this pregnancy and I haven't even read any books on it yet."
"Never fear," Clark said, gently sitting Lois upright and launching himself off the couch. He went to his bookshelf and pulled a pristine copy of What To Expect When You're Expecting off the bottom shelf. "I picked this up a few weeks after you told me that you were pregnant, just in case you decided that you wanted to keep the baby." He rejoined her on the couch and extended the book toward her.
She took it gratefully. "Thanks. Let me guess, you've already read it?"
"That and about four other books," he admitted sheepishly.
Lois shook her head, amused. "Must be nice, being able to get through a book like this in about thirty seconds." She hefted the book's weight in one hand.
"More like fifteen," Clark corrected her with a mischievous smile.
Lois smacked his chest with the thick book, only making him laugh. "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up," she said in mock annoyance. Then, in slight wonderment, "I can't believe you actually read this."
"Why not?" Clark asked, turning sideways on the couch and putting a hand between his head and the back of the couch. "I want to know everything. What the baby is doing each week. What you may or may not be experiencing at any given time. Did you know that at seventeen weeks, our child is about five inches long? The book compares it to the size of a turnip." He spread his fingers about five inches apart as Lois made a face. "What?"
"I hate turnips," she said.
Clark laughed. "Okay, so we won't compare Baby Lane to a turnip."
"Baby Lane?" she asked, sounding surprised.
"What?" he asked again, confused.
"It's just...well, I guess I didn't even think of this child like that. With my last name, that is. Don't you want it to have Kent?"
Clark shrugged. "I guess I haven't thought that much about it either. I just assumed that you'd want the baby to carry your name, since we're not..."
"Not married," Lois finished for him.
Clark sighed. "Yeah."
Lois was silent for a moment, then she too, sighed. "Everything is so much harder than we thought, huh?"
"Not really harder," he hedged. "Just more interesting," he said, hoping to put a positive spin on it. "The truth is, I'm happy to see either one of our last names on this baby. So long as he or she is happy and healthy, that's all that matters."
"So, you wouldn't care if I named it Ishkabibble?" Lois teased and Clark had to wonder where that name had come from.
"You are so weird," he mused.
"I'm the weird one, huh? You're the one who flies."
Clark chuckled. "Okay, you win that point. So, did you want me to bring you home tonight? Or would you like to stay? Not that I'm forcing you to choose now. It's just, well, you look tired."
"I guess I am a little tired. But I've still got enough energy to stay for a while."
"Good. Oh, no."
"Someone in trouble?"
Clark nodded and inclined his head, listening as the call for help was picked up by his sensitive hearing. "Yeah. There's a massive fire down at the docks. I might be while. Just leave me a note if you decide to go back to your place, okay?"
"Okay," she promised.
Clark spun into the familiar blue, red, and yellow, kissed Lois, and took off.
The fire was worse than he'd feared. Five cheek-by-jowl warehouses were ablaze, the fire so intense that the fire crews were having difficulty in reaching the people trapped inside - mostly immigrant workers who'd been assigned the overnight shifts in producing the various products the warehouses made or in packaging the inventory in readiness for the morning pickups by trucks or ships. He did his best to reach everyone, flying in and out of the collapsing buildings, rescuing people two at a time when it was possible, often needing to hoist one or two unconscious bodies over a shoulder in order to get them out into the fresh air and to the attention of the EMTs standing by, ready to help.
It took Clark far longer than he would have liked, the overnight crews numbering much more than he would have thought. In the end, most sustained some degree of burns and suffered from smoke inhalation. A lucky few who had been able to get out first were unscathed. A dozen people had lost their lives, a blow to Clark's heart, though he knew he'd done everything in his power to help, including dousing patches of fire each time he went into a building to pull out what survivors he could, so the fire crews could finally reach some of those trapped within.
Clark emerged from the scorched shell of the final building some three or three and a half hours later. He couldn't quite tell. All he knew was that he was tired and more than ready to shower the stench of the fire off and climb into bed. He wondered if Lois was still there, or if she'd gone home. He hoped she was there. Better than any sunlight, she recharged his soul. With the deaths of a dozen people on his mind, he needed the boost that Lois gave him.
After speaking with the emergency responders and ensuring that they no longer needed his assistance, Clark took off through the night. He stopped only once to prevent a collision between an SUV and a motorcycle. Then he was home.
As he stepped through the terrace door into his bedroom, he could see Lois fast asleep in his bed, the book he'd given her open and laying across the bump of her belly. He smiled, feeling Lois' warmth and love envelope him even though she was not actually awake to talk to him and put his mind at ease. He spent several long minutes just watching her sleep, transfixed by her beauty and the knowledge that, somehow, incredibly, she loved him. Not Superman and all he could do, but Clark, the man with simple farmland roots. He shook his head in the dark, wondering, again, how he'd gotten so lucky.
Then, aware of how the smell of the fire still clung to him like a morbid second skin, he quietly extracted some clothing from his drawers and headed off to shower. Inside, he turned the water on as hot as it would go, then proceeded to scrub his body down with a moisturizing soap that he'd picked out for the slight coconut scent it had. Once he was sure that the smell was gone from both his skin and his hair, he dried and dressed. He slipped into the bed beside Lois, flipped onto his side so he could watch the even way her chest rose and fell with breath, then, feeling more content than he had in what felt like ages, he dropped off to sleep.
To Be Continued...
