NOTE: Alright, so I know I said I was going to title this "Parents" but I thought better of it as I was writing it and titled it something more appropriate.
Summary: So, The Kents and Lanes meet for dinner. Lois has an arguement with her family.
FYI:I know that in the Smallville world, Lucy (Lois' sister) ran off into hiding after stealing Lex's money and she was never really heard from again. So, in MY version here, Lucy came back years later--like in 2009--and was able to fix things with the help of her father and his connections. She did her short time in prison--because there WERE consequences--and then signed on to the military. She figured it was a way to be closer to her father, the General.
CHAPTER 2: "Family"
February; 2015
KENT FARM
Lois felt a little uncomfortable sitting there. In the last few minutes it had been dead silent at the dinner table and she had no idea in how to break it. She turned to the people around her.
Clark was sitting right beside her and he had never looked so bored.
Martha, who was at the head of the table, gave Lois a small, uneasy smile. She too looked awkward just sitting there.
Lois turned her attention to the person in front of her, Lucy--her little sister. Lucy kept picking at her food with a disgusting look upon her face. Just a while ago she had said how the pasta had tasted dry to her and how there was too much tomatoes on it. Lois knew that it wasn't true. Lucy just liked to get under people's skin. Lois wished nothing than to reach over and give her a good punch.
And finally, Lois set her eyes on the man who was sitting right next to her sister. The General looked--well, he just kept staring at everyone with a glare. An evil glare. A glare that could probably turn everyone to stone if that were even physically possible.
Lois let out a sigh. Ever since the general had found out about the engagement, he had been cold towards not only Lois, but the rest of the Kents. It had annoyed Lois, but she had kind of been expecting it. She was perfectly aware of what her father had expected of his little girls. He had wanted his daughters to marry soldiers and men with a lot more potential in their future. And in his eyes, Clark did not fit the role.
If he only knew, Lois thought as she turned to her fiancé, the superhero of Metropolis.
Lois reached out under the table and took his hand.
Clark took it and looked up at her. He gave her an encouraging smile, then turned to his soon-to-be father-in-law.
The General looked harsher down at Clark. Clark felt as if the General wanted nothing more than to reach over for his gun and pull the trigger. Thank goodness that he was bullet-proof.
Clark broke his eyes away.
Lois saw the look the General was giving Clark. It was making her stomach turn. She immediately turned to Martha. "Hey, Mrs. K. How about that dessert?"
Martha took the hint. She got up to her feet. "Sounds good. Who's gonna want a piece?"
Lucy's face turned. "Ugh. If the dessert is as good as this pasta, I'll pass," she muttered.
Lois' jaw tightened. She wasn't getting Lucy. When she had first stayed at the Kent Farm a long time ago, Lucy had been Little Miss Brown-Noser. She would do chores around the farm without being asked to. She would also kiss ass to every single member of the Kents. Now… Lois shook her head. She focused back at what was at hand right now. Lucy being a little bitch. "Lucy," she warned.
"She's just speaking her mind, Lo. Last I checked, free speech was still accepted in this country," the General said with a glare.
Lois turned to him, her eyes icy cold. "Freedom of speech and being down-right cruel are two very separate things."
The two held each other's gaze for a long moment.
Lucy rolled her eyes. "If the two of you are going to kill each other, please do it quick. I have places to be." She pushed out of her chair.
"Sit down, cadet," the General ordered.
Lucy obliged.
"Bet you wish I would sit at command too, huh General?" Lois asked with a cold tone.
"Don't push me, Lo," he ordered. "You don't want to see me angry."
Lois scoffed. "And you don't want to see me angry."
Then, they were off. Both the General and Lois stood up and began to scream at each other back and forth, completely forgetting about the audience around them.
Martha silently stood up from her chair and motioned Clark to follow her.
Clark wanted to stay beside Lois, just in case she needed some support and backup. He looked up at Lois and saw the determination on her face. Right then, he knew that Lois didn't need him. He followed his mother.
Lucy rolled her eyes as her family continued with the yelling. She stormed out of the house, knowing all too well that neither her father nor her sister had heard her.
"I just want to know, why you are so angry with this engagement!" Lois belted out at last after arguing with her father for almost half an hour. "It is my life!"
"Exactly! And you're ruining it by getting married at such a young age!" The General was completely red in the face.
"Then why did you give my hand away in marriage to Clark when he went to ask you a year ago in DC?! He asked you for permission before he even proposed to me!"
"I thought you would have had enough sense to say no to the boy!"
Lois rolled her eyes. "Daddy, I love him! You know this! And I'm not some stupid, immature brat. I always think things through when it comes to big decisions--you know this!"
"One always stumbles," he said simply.
Lois opened her mouth, ready to yell at him some more. However, she stopped herself. She knew the screaming was going to take her nowhere. She needed to calm herself down a bit. So, she took a deep breath. "Daddy…I will be 29 when I walk down that aisle. Only two years younger than Mom when she married you. Not to mention that my engagement to Clark will be longer than three years, as opposed to you and Mom's which was only a year."
The General took a big swallow. He too was trying to calm himself now. "Lois…you deserve so much better. Better than--" he stopped himself and lowered his voice for the next part. "You know that I have always liked the Kents. They are a great American family. But…a farm boy for a husband?"
"Smallville is more than that," Lois stated through clenched teeth.
The General rolled his eyes a bit. "Alright, a reporter." He gave a slight shrug, as if saying that that only made Clark a bit better.
Lois bit down her lip. She hated when people viewed Clark as just that. It enraged her. He was more than a farm boy or a reporter or Superman. Those three things were only a part of who he was. They didn't see him clearly. Didn't see that even if he weren't the Man of Steel, Clark Kent meant a lot in this world.
The General, with a lot more calm, walked over to his daughter. He placed his hands on Lois' shoulders, gently. "Lo…please, try to look at it from my point of view here. You have the whole world ahead of you. Why stick here or Metropolis when you could see the world? I know that you're the best reporter the Daily Planet has--hell, one of the best in the whole country. But, that's only a fraction of what you can be. If you were get out, you could--"
Lois put up a hand to silence him. "Daddy, please. We've been over this. I love my job and I love my career. I wouldn't want anything changed in the world I live in. And believe me when I say that Clark is so much more than I will ever deserve."
The General dropped his hands, his eyes looking a bit defeated.
Lois straightened herself up. "I want a family, Daddy. I want to wake up in the morning in a place I can really call home. I know that you like your lifestyle, but it's not mine. Back when I was a kid, I always felt alone and out of place. Jumping from country to country every month was just not for me. I could never call a place my home. It wasn't until I came to this farm that I felt that way for the very first time."
The annoyance made its way to the General one more time. "So, you plan to give up your career and live here?"
Lois shook her head. "Of course not. Believe me, even though I love this farm, I could never run it. I'm a city girl; chores and me do not mix."
The General frowned, not understanding.
Lois caught on to his unspoken question. "What I want is a stable home. In the future, when Clark and I decide to have children--"
Her father squirmed a little.
Lois ignored it. "I want them to have the experience I never did. Because even though education and exploring the world are definitely important, I personally believe that family means much more than that."
Lois waited for her father's reaction. She had finally let out the whole truth. Now, she had to see how he would react to it.
After several moments the General looked just as stubborn as ever. He cleared his throat. "Well, I'm sorry that I gave you such a horrible childhood, Lo. And that I was a horrible father, apparently." With that, he took his hat and began to walk out. "Give my apologies to Mrs. Kent. I'm sorry I couldn't stay for dessert. Also, tell Lucy to meet me in Metropolis by 2100 hours. I'll be getting the jet ready."
Lois shook her head and began to go after him. "Daddy, that's not what I meant." Dammit! She had chosen her words completely wrong again!
However, the General had already gotten into his car and was driving off.
Lois wanted to go after him, but knew that it wasn't the best idea. She knew that the best way to reason--well, somewhat reason--with the General was through letters. She would have to write one in about a week, once he had cooled down a bit.
She felt a rush of wind come right then. "Well, that didn't go so well." She knew Clark was right behind her.
He wrapped his arms around her. "Sorry about that."
She shook her head. "Don't be. It's not your fault." She pushed away the unsteady feeling and turned towards her fiancé. She smiled up at him. "As long as there's you and me, everything else can crumble."
She pushed herself up and gave him a tender kiss. One he met with the utmost enthusiasm.
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"Where's the General?" asked Lucy once she had come back into the Kent house. She had been gone for four hours already. She wanted to know for sure that the argument in her family was done with before heading back.
Lois looked up from the book she was reading on the couch. She gave her sister a little smile. "Metropolis. The jet is taking off at 2100," she said the last part with a mocking tone towards her father.
Lucy arched a brow. "I take it that it didn't go so well."
"You guess right."
Lucy stood there for a bit, thinking and looking a bit sad.
Lois was about to ask her if something was wrong, when all of a sudden Lucy went back to her bitchy self.
"Well, glad to know I don't have to stay in this stink hole much longer." Lucy began to head up the stairs to get her stuff.
"That's it," Lois muttered as she put down the book and marched right over to Lucy. "You know, I've just about have had it with your bitchiness today!"
Lucy turned her, frowning. "What are you talking about?"
"Ever since you arrived back--no, scratch that--ever since I told you about my engagement to Clark you have been in such bitchy mood. Now, I want to know why. Do you have the same opinions as the General? Or what?" Lois demanded.
Lucy rolled her eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about." She began to head back up the stairs.
However, Lois was having none of that. She blocked her sister's way. "Oh, no, missy. You're gonna stay here until you tell me."
Lucy turned the other way. Forget her damn clothes.
But, Lois blocked her again.
"Dammit, Lois! Let me go!" Lucy tried to push her way through Lois, but wasn't able to. Her gorilla of a sister was much stronger.
"Lucy!"
Lucy finally gave up. She grunted. "Fine! I'll tell you!"
Lois crossed her arms and waited.
Lucy took a deep breath. "I just…" she tried to find the right words to say. "I just hate that you're getting the better end of the deal again."
Lois frowned. "What are you talking about?"
Lucy rolled her eyes. "Come on, Lo. You've had it made all your life. But until recently, I thought that I was finally beating you at something. Since I joined the military and knowing that I was pleasing Daddy, I thought that it would make me happier. And I thought I was happy, but then…" Tears stung her eyes then. She looked away, not wanting Lois to see her tears. "I got that call from you and you told me that Clark had proposed. And you never sounded so…happy to me." She looked up at her sister then. "And then, all of my entire happiness was gone. Why is it that right when I start to feel the remoteness of being happy, you have to come in all blissful. It's not fair." Tears continued to come down her cheeks.
Lois didn't know what to say. She knew her sister really believed that she had had the worst childhood out of the two, but in Lois' eyes, everything was reversed. Lucy had gotten the education that Lois had always dreamed of getting.
Lois shook herself out of it. There was no point in dwelling into the past.
She looked up at her sister and gave her a small smile. "Believe me, Luce. You will find the right happiness. You just have to stop looking for it. It finds you. And whether it comes in a shape of an arm gun like Daddy--"
Lucy laughed.
Lois smirked. "Or if it comes in the shape of a gorgeous man…you'll know."
"How though? I've been dating countless men--from the army, the navy, the military. I've dated lawyers and a politician here and there and I can't seem to find him!"
Lois rolled her eyes. "Luce, I knew Smallville for four long years before I fell in love with him. And it took almost another four years for us to have a relationship. Believe me, you won't know when you've found him. But you will know he's the one when you've fallen in love with him. It's different with people. I've seen some fall instantly in love in a matter of weeks, with me it took years." She chuckled.
Lucy nodded, feeling calmer. "Thanks, Lo."
Lois hugged her. "Anytime."
The two sisters didn't pull away for quite a while. It was the first hug they had ever had that lasted longer than two seconds.
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"If I'm late and the General bites my head off, I'll have your head," Lucy warned.
The Lane sisters were at the Daily Planet. Lois had forgotten her paperwork there and needed it immediately. She took Lucy with her since she was taking Lucy to the airport anyway.
Lois smiled. "Oh, pipe down." She went to her desk. "Give me a minute."
Lucy found a mirror on her sister's desk and took it. She looked at her hair and saw that a strand was out of place. She immediately tucked it back in. Then, she looked at herself to make sure everything was in place. She had her uniform on and needed to be sure everything was nice and tugged. Army brats, that's the only way she could ever explain it.
"Hey, Lucy!" came a voice.
Lucy turned and saw that it was Jimmy Olsen. He was waving at her, but looked a bit busy.
She waved back and smiled.
He turned back to his work.
Lucy moved over to her sister's desk, and right then, she bumped into someone.
Papers flew everywhere.
"Dammit!" A man exclaimed.
Lucy let out a groan and she began to help. "Sorry."
The man shook his head. "It's alright. That's what I get for being a hurry."
Lucy collected the last of the papers and handed them to the man.
He looked up at the same time. And when both their eyes met, they stayed perfectly still. Suddenly, both felt as if the room was filled with electrical currents or something similar to it.
Lucy's body felt like melting as she stared into this man's chocolate brown eyes. She felt her heart exhilarating.
"Troupe?" Lois' voice pulled them back into reality.
The man turned to Lois. "Hey, Lane."
Lois smiled at him and she turned to her sister. "Glad to know you two have met."
The man smiled at Lucy then. "Actually, we haven't been properly introduced." He extended his hand. "Ron Troupe, reporter here at the Planet."
Lucy grinned and shook his hand. Her body felt goosebumps all over. "Lucy Lane."
"You Lane's sister?"
She nodded.
"Well, nice to see that not everyone in Lois' family has nothing but a scowl in their faces."
Lucy laughed.
Lois sent Ron a death stare.
Ron turned to her and pointed at her face. "See, that right there."
"Troupe, if you don't get out of my way, I'm gonna kick your ass," Lois warned.
Ron chuckled and turned to Lucy. "Well, I better run. Nice to meet you, Miss Lane."
Lucy's smile did not fade. "Please, call me Lucy."
Ron nodded. "Nice to meet you, Lucy."
"Nice meeting you too, Ron."
With a final smile, Ron began to rush off again.
Lucy stared after him, biting her lip.
Lois grinned. "Found your new candy there?" she teased.
Lucy rolled her eyes. "Just shut up and take me to the damn airport."
Lois chuckled and lead the way back out of the building.
Once she saw that Lois wasn't paying attention, Lucy ran towards Jimmy. "Hey, Jimmy?"
"What's up, Lucy?" Jimmy asked. He didn't look as busy anymore.
"Will you give this to Ron when you can?" She gave Jimmy a card with her phone number on the back. She glanced back to see that Lois was still being unobservant.
Jimmy frowned. "Troupe?"
"Yeah." Lucy placed it into his hands and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Thank you, Jimmy!" She ran off.
Jimmy shrugged, placed the card into his pocket, and went back to work.
A/N: Alright, so for those who DON'T know who Ron Troupe is, he's Lucy's husband in the comic books. He works with Lois and Clark and is one of the best reporters there in the Planet. Just thought you should know. Alright, so...You know what to do! REVIEW!
NEXT CHAPTER: "Apartment"