Rating: K+
Disclaimer: I own nowt
Summary: Clark decides it's time to take the next step in his relationship with Lois. But when you're proposing to Lois Lane, does everything go to plan?

A.N. First ever fan fic so go easy on me! Hope you enjoy.

Taking That Leap

Clark Kent awoke to see the sun begin to spill effortlessly into his bedroom and bathe his bed companion in a bright, almost angelic glow. Lois would totally murder me if she knew I was likening her to an angel. Good thing I don't blurt out everything I think like she does. He inwardly chuckled and lifted himself up on the pillows, careful not to stir the sleeping figure lying protectively in his arms. Lightly brushing Lois' hair behind her ear in his trademark fashion, Clark sighed peacefully as he watched her chest rise and fall in time with the heartbeat he was increasingly beginning to memorise. Those simple two notes soothed him more than he thought possible: they showed him she was safe. He sighed again, lightly tracing every inch of her delicate face with his finger. Clark had witnessed many breathtaking views in his life but this was by far his favourite.

And it was a view he never wanted to lose. He knew the moment he had come back to the bullpen over a year ago that she was it for him. She was the one. Somehow the brash, sarcastic girl who had clashed heads with him at every opportunity had turned into the most beautiful woman who he couldn't live without. She had embraced every aspect of his life in a way he never would have thought possible from anyone, not even his parents. All that was left now was the small matter of the bare fourth finger on her left hand.

After ensuring Lois truly was asleep, Clark sped over to the chest of drawers where he kept the engagement ring hidden and landed back in his bed before Lois had moved so much as an inch from her original position. He carefully opened the small velvet box to stare at the sparkling diamond that would be soon resting on Lois' hand tonight; so long as everything went smoothly.

Just the thought of proposing sent a wave of butterflies shooting through his stomach but the moment he glanced back at the woman beside him, he caught himself: what on earth do I have to be nervous about? Abandoning self control, he dropped the box beside him and landed a soft but meaningful kiss on her lips, shivering as the breath that escaped her mouth tickled his. The edges of his mouth twitched as he heard her heartbeat increase slightly, indicating that she was awake, and although she did not stir he felt her lips begin to reciprocate the kiss. Sure enough, a few seconds later Lois had knotted her hands in his hair and was kissing him back wholeheartedly.

"Why good morning, Lo," Clark murmured softly as they broke apart, smiling as her deep hazel eyes came into view.

"This isn't morning, Smallville, this is still night in my books," Lois said with a wide yawn. "Didn't Mrs K ever teach you to look but not touch? Especially when your victim is catching up on some much needed forty winks!"

"My victim?" Clark said incredulously. "Since when is Lois Lane anyone's victim? Especially not to her boyfriend, whose only crime was that he couldn't keep his hands off her."

"Her alien boyfriend might I add. And can we please stop talking in the third person; it's too early and I am caffeine deprived."

"I knew that alien thing would come back to bite me in the ass," Clark muttered, rolling his eyes.

"And apparently I am a victim because I can't sleep around here without being sexually harassed," Lois quipped and Clark raised an eyebrow at her. "Don't worry, I won't report you. Just be grateful I enjoy it." And leaning over she kissed him tenderly, chuckling as Clark sighed again.

"I am grateful. Very much so," Clark said, with one of the penetrating stares that would never fail to make Lois blush. He reached out to brush her freshly coloured cheeks, causing a lazy grin to spread across her face.

"You're going to turn me into a sap, Clark Kent."

"I'm counting on it," he said as their foreheads met and they shared a wide smile. "Though I kinda like you how you are now."

"I'm not gonna turn sappy for 'kinda like'; I've heard more conviction from a brick wall."

"Okay, how about 'love you and want to spend the rest of my life with you'?" Clark looked at Lois with playful, puppy-dog eyes and began to play with a strand of her hair.

Lois tried very hard to suppress a smile but failed miserably. "I think I can live with that."

Clark laughed and began kissing along her jaw line as Lois continued, somewhat breathlessly, "And for the record, I'm rather fond of you too."

"Very good to know," he growled and turned his full attention to kissing her. He slowly let his lips envelop hers, invoking a soft moan from her that made his hair stand on end. The kiss quickly became more heated and Clark rolled Lois over so that he was lying on top of her.

"Ow, what the hell was that?"

Clark looked down in horror to see that Lois had rolled over the engagement ring box he had left on the bed. Clark encompassed the hand Lois was currently using to explore for the cause of her pain with his own and with the other, stealthily grabbed the box and threw it into the open drawer across the room from them at the speed of a bullet. Lois raised her eyebrows, giving Clark her 'I'm-a-reporter-for-a-reason' look and began to open her mouth to question, when he placed a finger to her mouth. Smiling in memory of the last time she had done that very action to him, he muttered, "You'll find out tonight. I promise."

"I thought we were done with secrets," she said playfully.

"This is one I guarantee you'll like," Clark said, beginning to nip down Lois' neck.

"You're getting a bit cocky there, Mr Kent."

"Please, just for once, forsake the whole 'Mad-dog Lane' persona and be patient?" he said, grinning down at her.

"Alright, alright, if you're gonna beg me for it!" Lois said, rolling her eyes. "You're let off this one time."

Suddenly, abrasive noises interrupted the comfortable atmosphere as Clark's ears began to pick up the sounds of sirens and coarse screams coming from several miles off; making him curse silently. He was honoured to have the responsibility of protecting Metropolis and its people but the twinge he felt in his chest every time he had to leave Lois never got any easier to manage.

"I'm sorry, I have to go," he whispered delicately into Lois' ear and she looked up at him with complete understanding.

"Don't apologise. Go do your thing, Smallville," she said and gave him a smile that almost made his heart skip a beat.

Within the blink of an eye Clark had changed into his Blur attire – locking the chest of drawers in the process – and was standing next to Lois' side of the bed. "If I'm not back before we have to leave, I'll see you at work. I love you." And with that he gave her a brief, chaste kiss and sped away from the Kent Farm.

"God, I love you," Lois said in a whisper she was almost certain Clark could hear. And sure enough, several miles away in Metropolis, the Blur allowed himself a wide smile and quite unintentionally, tuned in to the vibrant, rhythmic heartbeat of one Lois Lane.