HOUR 10 – GOING INTO LABOR

THE FOLLOWING TAKES PLACE BETWEEN THE HOURS OF 2 P.M. AND 3 P.M.

"Damn, that actually hurt!' Clark complains as he rubs the spot on his shoulder where Lois hit him.

"That's nothing compared to what I'll soon be going through when this baby comes out of me," she snaps back as she struggles to get up from her chair.

"Why wouldn't it hurt?" Lucy looks curiously at the two of them as she comes over to help her sister.

"Clark is a lot stronger than you think," Lois quickly replies, giving Clark a nervous glance.

"We have more important things to do than have a discussion about how strong I am," he says, changing the subject as he puts his arm around his wife's waist. "We need to take you to the hospital."

"No sh!t, Sherlock," rolling her eyes as the three of them walk over to the car. "Oh, Smallville?" she says with a lilt in her voice.

"What?" turning to look at her as he's opening the passenger side door.

"Don't forget the leftovers."

He stares back at her with a surprised expression. "You're thinking about food at a time like this?"

"I'm hungry," she replies with a smirk as she brushes past him.

"I'll give her a hand," Lucy interjects.

Clark mutters under his breath as he heads back to the table to fetch the waitress who served them.

"You didn't really need that food did you," Lucy asks with an arch of her brow while helping Lois into the car.

"Nah," Lois laughs. "I'm just messing with him."

"You are so bad," shaking her head with amusement. "Even in labor you still manage to push his buttons," she adds while adjusting Lois' seatbelt before closing the door.

Lois lowers the window and sticks her head out, her hands resting on the edge of the window frame. "Aren't you coming with us?" she asks with a worried expression on her face.

"My car will get towed if I leave my car here," Lucy replies as she takes out her keys and puts on her sunglasses. "I'll be right behind you. Met Gen, right?"

"Yep," Lois nods her head. "See you there," she replies while nervously biting her lower lip.

Lucy leans forward to give her sister a peck on the cheek. "You'll get through this just fine," she replies as she straightens up. "We Lane girls are tough. Don't you forget that."

Lois smiles at her sister. "You're right. Since when do we back down from a challenge anyway?"

"We don't," Lucy replies as she straightens up. "See you at the hospital," she says as she walks away.

Clark slides behind the steering wheel. "Here," handing Lois the food container before putting his seat belt on. "You didn't really want the food did you?" giving her a slightly dark look as he inserts the key into the ignition.

"I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about," she replies with a lift of her chin.

He rolls his eyes as he turns the key. "Hmm," his eyes furrowing as he tries it several more times.

Lois looks over at him. "What's wrong?" she asks as he unfastens his seatbelt.

"The car's not starting," he answers back as he gets out.

"Perfect timing as usual," Lois gasps out as she clutches her stomach.

Clark pops the hood and x-rays the engine first to make sure there was nothing wrong with it before examining everything else. He starts to get frustrated when he can't seem to find the reason for the car not starting.

"What's taking you so long?" Lois asks in an irritated voice.

"I haven't found the problem yet," he replies in an annoyed tone.

"Well hurry up already. This baby's not gonna wait for you," she says while clutching her stomach again.

"I'm going as fast as I can," he replies as he's checking the connections to the battery. When he finds them loose he realizes he's finally found the problem. "Bingo!" he declares as he tightens them up. "Try starting the car now," he calls out to Lois.

"Sure. Why not. It's not as if I don't have anything better to do," muttering under her breath and clutching her stomach at the same time as she reaches over to turn the key.

Clark has a look of satisfaction on his face as the engine roars to life. "That's a relief," he says with a smile as he lowers the hood and gets back into the car. He looks over at her as he fastens his seat belt again. "You okay?" he asks, the smile turning to concern.

"I'm in labor. Do you think I'm okay?" snapping back at him as he pulls away from the curb.

As he enters the main road, he can't help thinking that it was going to be a long, long ride to the hospital…

Coming up next: Hour 11 – The ride to the hospital