Chapter Text
Lois holds her breath, counting down the excruciatingly slow minutes. She caves and decides she can’t wait any longer. Suddenly, there it is. Now breathing almost too fast, Lois sits on the counter of her studio apartment bathroom with her eyes locked on a tiny pink plus sign. Tears come to her eyes, then a smile as she realizes her and Clark’s lives are about to change forever.
…
Two weeks have passed since Lois found out that she’s pregnant. She has been dying to tell Clark, but with Thanksgiving being today, she thought it was the perfect opportunity to make a big announcement and surprise Clark at dinner with his family. Lois glows as she walks out of the doctor’s office clutching her paperwork under her arm. Though it’s far too early to tell what gender the baby is or see their tiny features, the doctor assured her that the baby is perfectly healthy. Part of her feels bad that she didn’t include Clark, but she didn’t want him to be disappointed if she had gotten a false-positive test or if something was wrong. Keeping it a secret until she was sure that it’s good news was her little way of protecting him, she thought.
Lois gets in her car and hides the paperwork in the glove box. She heads to the Kent farm eagerly anticipating her surprise, but worrying that she might spill the beans before the right time. Still, she’s hopeful that Clark will be just as excited as she is. After nine years together and just over a year married, they’ve been talking a lot lately about starting a family. Clark was actually the one who brought it up, much to Lois’ surprise. He’s always been great with kids. Chloe and Ollie’s son, Jonathan, has grown up with “Uncle Clark” always there to look out for him, and she remembers how impressed she was with how gentle and kind Clark was with little Maddie when she stayed with the Kents. Lois has always known Clark would make a great father, but with that thought, her worry of whether or not she would make a great mother starts to creep in. She pulls up to the farm and notices Clark’s truck is already parked in the driveway. With a bit of hesitation, she takes one last glance at the glovebox and heads to the door.
“Honey, I’m home!” Lois playfully shouts as she walks inside the familiar living room. The smell of Mrs. Kent’s cooking already fills the house- slow roasted turkey, fresh bread, and rosemary, all swirling through the air and making Lois a lot hungrier than she expected. Maybe it’s the hormones, she thinks.
“Lois, hi,” Mrs. Kent greets her as she comes down the stairs. Clark walks in through the backdoor and sees Martha giving Lois a long hug. He sets a bag of groceries on the kitchen counter and makes his way over to his two favorite women.
“It feels like it’s been ages since I’ve been home.” Mrs. Kent looks lovingly at the two of them as she heads to unpack the last of the groceries. Lois gives Clark a big kiss on their way to the kitchen. Don’t be suspicious. Act natural. Lois tries not to let on that she’s hiding such a big secret, but Clark knows her better than anyone.
“Is everything okay?” He asks with a gentle hand on her waist.
“Of course, Smallville. Just peachy,” she insists. Martha places a key lime pie in the refrigerator. Clark super-speeds and puts the rest of the groceries away in an instant.
“You should come back home more often, Mom.”
“I know. I’ve just been so busy in Washington, and with you and Lois out in Metropolis now there isn’t much of a point in coming back here too often,” Martha explains, taking a peek at the turkey in the oven.
“Well, maybe Lois and I should-” Clark is interrupted by a knock at the door.
“I’ll get it,” Martha insists. Lois spots a tray of muffins cooling on the island. She sneaks one and offers a bite to Clark.
“Lois, I think those are for dinner,” he teases.
“Fine, more for me,” she says with a grin as she backs away from him and sinks her teeth into the muffin. Martha opens the door and is surprised to see-
“Lana…”
“Hi, Mrs. Kent. I don’t want to intrude, but is Clark here?” Lana stands in the doorway of the house that holds so many memories both for her and Clark, anxious to step inside.
“Of course, come in,” Martha waves her inside. Clark and Lois look over and see the unexpected guest. Lois’ heart falls to her stomach, and the banana nut muffin no longer seems appetizing. Clark doesn’t know how to react, and Lois watches him.
“Lana?” he says, quietly. Lana’s eyes light up at the sight of him, like they always have. Lois feels a tightness in her throat as she sees the way Lana looks at Clark. Even though it’s been nearly a decade, the sight of Clark’s first love is somehow not any easier to face.
“Hi Clark, Lois,” Lana smiles and steps into the living room just enough to not be standing in the doorway. Even from that distance, Lois can see how beautiful she looks, with her sleek dark hair laying just past her shoulders in loose waves. She knows that she shouldn’t be bothered, but she can’t help but feel uneasy, and maybe even a little bit inferior.
“You’re back in Smallville?” Lois asks, trying to push herself through the awkwardness.
“No, I’m just passing through. I hope I’m not interrupting. I was hoping Clark and I could talk for just a bit,” she explains through her soft smile. Clark glances at Lois, and then over to Martha. He’s avoiding looking directly at Lana, though he’s not entirely sure why.
Martha makes her way back to the kitchen.
“I could use some help with the table if you want to give me a hand, Lois,” she says with a sweet smile. Mrs. Kent has always had a knack for reading the room.
“Of course,” Lois answers with a faux-confident tone and a forced smile. Clark turns to Lois and gives her a knowing look.
“I’ll be right back,” he says as he hesitantly makes his way toward the front door. Lois just nods and presents another less convincing forced smile. Her heart sinks as she watches them walk out the door. Martha hands her a stack of plates, and she takes them to the dining room table. After a moment of staring at the place settings, Lois’ anxiety is too much for her to ignore.
“Actually, Mrs. Kent, I forgot I have something I need to do before tonight,” she explains. Martha sees through her strong facade, though she doesn’t want to push and make the situation even more awkward. Lois darts toward the back door.
“Tell Clark I’ll be back…”
“Lois-” Martha follows her.
“You know, you could call me ‘Mom’. If you’d be okay with that,” she says sweetly. Lois gives her a sad smile and nods. Then, she’s gone.
…
Chloe tucks a strand of blonde bangs behind her ear as she stares at Lois in disbelief.
“Lana Lang? Did she say why she’s back or how long she’s staying?” she inquires as a waiter sets her cappucino on the table in front of them. Lois fiddles with her own coffee cup in her hands.
“I don’t know. She didn’t say anything, other than that she’s not staying.”
Chloe can tell Lois is upset, but doesn’t quite understand why.
“You know that you don’t have anything to worry about, right? Clark adores you. It’s been over a decade since he’s even seen Lana.”
“But what if seeing her again brings back…old feelings? I don’t know why, I just- as soon as I saw her, Chloe, I felt like I did that day at your wedding when she showed up just as Clark and I were about to…”
Chloe tilts her head and takes a quick sip of her coffee. She leans in closer to Lois, really trying to reassure her as much as she can.
“Lois, you know how much you mean to Clark. Just because Clark and Lana may have history, doesn’t mean that he has any interest in history repeating itself,” she adds. Lois is speechless for a change, which Chloe knows is a red flag.
“Is there something more that’s going on? Clark would never do anything to hurt you.”
“I know,” Lois mumbles. “I just can’t help but think- if she hadn’t put on the Prometheus suit and absorbed all that kryptonite, that Clark would’ve…” she pauses, not wanting to even say her worries out loud, but Chloe knows exactly where she’s going.
“Chosen to be with Lana?” she asks. Lois sighs and tries to wash away the lump in her throat with a gulp of decaf vanilla latte.
“Lois, you know that’s not true-”
“I don’t, I don’t know because he never had to make that choice,” she trails off. Tears start pricking at her eyes now, but she tries to hold it in.
“I guess I’m just feeling really insecure, which is really annoying,” she adds. Chloe reaches across the table to grab Lois’ hand and leans in even closer.
“Lois, where is this coming from?” She tries to reassure her with a smile.
“I’ve never seen a couple more in love than you and Clark. Except maybe me and Oliver,” she teases, hoping to get some kind of positive reaction out of Lois. Instead, Lois’ expression turns to fear.
“I- I’m pregnant,” she lets out. As eager as she’s been to share her secret, it doesn’t make her feel any better to get it off her chest. Chloe’s eyes widen and her jaw drops so far that she almost knocks her cup off of the table.
“Oh my God, Lois!” She nearly jumps across the table to tackle Lois into a hug and can’t help but to grin as she pulls back to look at her, still in shock.
“That’s amazing. I- I’m so happy for you!” Her smile fades a little as she realizes.
“You haven’t told Clark yet, have you?”
Lois shakes her head. She wants so badly to be excited and follow through with her plans to surprise Clark, but what if he’s not as happy about it as she is?
“I was planning to surprise him tonight, make a big announcement at dinner. Now, honestly, all I want to do is run away. I know that I can’t, I shouldn’t. It’s just a lot. I’ve always been afraid of holding him back…from his destiny. What if he doesn’t see this as a good thing? What if I am actually holding him back. I feel like I’m still learning how to be a wife. I don’t know if I can be a good mom too. What if I’m not enough?”
Now Chloe is speechless. The tears finally break free from Lois’ pained face. She doesn’t understand why all of these insecurities are bubbling up to the surface. All she knows is that she wants to see Clark. He always has a way of making her feel better about anything, but she’s scared to face him.
“How did you know you were ready?” she asks Chloe, fighting to hold back her tears.
“I didn’t,” Chloe shrugs.
“I don’t think anyone ever really does, but I can tell you…there is no love greater than holding your baby for the first time and seeing the person you love adore them just as much as you do.”
“We’ve talked about starting a family at some point, but I guess what scares me now that this is actually happening is…for so long Clark pictured this beautiful future, a church wedding, raising kids on the farm, with Lana. What if I can’t live up to that?” she says through more relentless tears.
“Lo, there’s nothing I can tell you that will convince you that Clark worships the ground you walk on. You are so enough for him. I know this is scary and new, but you need to go to him. Don’t run away from this. Trust Clark, and trust yourself.”
…