"You can be really annoying sometimes. You know that?" Lois said.

"So it's true? You're pregnant?"

"Well, unless I grew another heart, I guess so."

He stared intensely at her stomach. "I can see it."

Lois rolled her eyes. "Would you quit that? You're not an ultrasound machine."

He had a wide smile, obviously thrilled by the news. "We're going to have a baby," he said, stating the obvious.

She smiled, joining his enthusiasm. They were going to have a baby. He hugged her and then they shared a joyful kiss.

When they broke away, he asked, "Did you already know?"

"I found out yesterday. Lucy blackmailed me into going to the doctor."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I tried, but things kept getting in the way."

"You mean this custody battle?"

"And your Superman duties."

He drew her closer. "I know it's been rough on you, but I hope you know that you can tell me anything, even with all this junk that's going on."

She leaned up and kissed him. "I do know that."

They sat in a blissful silence. Then Lois asked, "Why were you listening to my heartbeat anyway?"

"I listen to your heartbeat sometimes when I'm trying to fall asleep. It's soothing."

She looked at him skeptically, wondering how a heartbeat could be soothing.

"This is so exciting," Clark said. "We should start getting stuff for the baby. I can't wait to tell Mom."

"What do you want, a boy or a girl?" Lois asked. It wasn't as casual a question as it might have been before Evan. He had a son. Did he want a girl now? Would he be less excited over a son?

"I'll be happy either way. Just think our very own baby."

The way he said baby, she realized that it would be their baby to hear him or her say its first word or watch it take its first step. Things he had missed with Evan.

"Are you happy about the baby?" he asked. He remembered their discussion from a couple of nights ago.

She smiled. "I'm very happy. I think I am ready to be a mother. Evan doesn't seem to mind me too much. I was being silly. I guess I was still insecure about my ability to have a baby and the Evan situation. It was stupid."

He kissed her forehead, "Stupid, but understandable. I'm just happy that we have this baby now. He or she couldn't have had better timing, it's a gift from heaven."

"That would sound so corny and cliché, if it didn't seem so true." She leaned against him, "And our new family will be complete once we have Evan again."

He nodded. She sounded so confident that they would have Evan again, it gave him added hope. He couldn't wait until this custody battle was over.

---

They found themselves in court a month later. Temporary custody had been given to Lana since she had spent the most time with him and he was more familiar with her, but he had gotten visitation rights once a week, not that it was quality time with Lana staring daggers. Neither Clark or Lois could figure why she had told him at all, if she didn't want Clark to see Evan.

Clark stopped in front of the heavy oaken doors that lead into the courtroom. "I don't think you should go in. Why don't you wait out here?"

Lois got very angry, very fast, "What do you mean I shouldn't go in there? This situation concerns me too!"

He gently rested his hands on her arms to help calm her down. "I didn't mean it that way. I just meant that it could be stressful in there and it wouldn't take much for you to lose your temper. It's important that you stay as calm and stress free as possible in your condition."

Condition was fast becoming the word she hated most in the English language. Clark had been referring to her condition for the past month. At first his protectiveness had been kind of sweet, he refused to super speed, fly, or even drive the car over a certain speed with her. He had also tried to talk Perry out of giving her a couple stories, but that was really unnecessary. Perry hadn't given her any hard, potentially dangerous stories since he found out about his future godson. "Clark, I swear if you say condition one more time, I'm going to slug you. I know what you're saying, but I'll be more stressed if I have to wait out here and wonder what's happening. Besides, I have to be scrutinized too."

"You're right. I just worry about you and the baby."

She took his hand. "There's nothing to worry about. This baby is a Lane-Kent. That says it all. Let's just focus on Evan right now."

They took a deep breath and entered the courtroom. Nell was staring at them in an unfriendly manner. Evan was sitting beside her. Clark was puzzled at why Nell should be mad at them. Custody battles made people strange sometimes. They took their seats. Their lawyer smiled at them. "It's going to be fine. We got a good judge, Judge Taylor." They glanced over at Lana's lawyer. He had a thin, bent nose and beady brown eyes. He had an overall slimy appearance, but he also looked sharp. He smiled and waved at them. Lana pretended not to even see them.

They rose as the judge came out. He was in his 50s with chestnut colored skin and snow-white hair. He looked kind, but he also looked like he didn't put up with any nonsense. After the initial court proceedings, they got down to the nitty-gritty.

Clark went first as the plaintiff. He simply stated his case and didn't say anything bad about Lana. Lana still reflected badly, not telling him he had a son and then showing up to have him watch Evan when it was convenient for her. Lana's lawyer didn't cross-examine Clark, but Lois didn't like the way, he smiled. He was up to something.

Lana took the stand. Lois snorted when Lana swore to tell the whole truth over that holy book. It was a joke given that she had carried a lie directly concerning this case that spanned over 5 years. She looked distressed and saddened as she took a seat. She even took out a tissue and her eyes filled. Lois rolled her eyes. Lana had missed her calling as an actress. She could turn on the waterworks faster than anyone she knew. Lois just hoped the judge could see that it was an act.

"I've always wanted to do what's best for my child and I've done that. I love him and I want to protect him. That's why I can't allow him to be raised by those people. I know his stepmother all too well. Did you know that she's an alcoholic?"

Lois stood up in fury and shouted, "That's a lie!"

The judge banged his gavel. "It's not your turn, madam. You will get a chance to speak your piece, but in the meantime, sit down and keep quiet or I'm afraid I will have to throw you out of this courtroom."

Lois sat down in a huff. Lana looked in her direction. She looked so smug and pleased with herself. Surely the judge could see that.

"Please continue, Miss Lang, and remember that you are under oath and that you need to support your claims."

"Of course, your honor," Lana said sweetly and respectfully.

Lana's lawyer pulled out papers and took them to the judge. "As you can see, Miss Lane was kicked out of Met U for underage drinking. She was also shown to be a violent drunk. Whether or not she paralyzed him, she did kick him."

"I object," said Clark and Lois' lawyer, standing up. "The actions of a teenager have no bearing on now. Miss Lane is not an alcoholic, nor is what I can only imagine to have been self-defense a crime."

"Really?" said Lana's lawyer. "Then she wasn't seen drinking herself into a stupor 5 weeks ago?"

The judge banged his gavel. "Order. I've heard enough on this subject. Do you have anything else to add, Miss Lang?"

"Not only does she drink, your honor, but if you read the papers, she's consistently in life and death situations. Always needing Superman to swoop in and save the day."

"I object," their lawyer said again. "I don't see how this has any bearing on this case." It was a good thing he had spoken up, because Lois would have. She was so livid, she would have been kicked out of court. Lana had been kidnapped, stalked, shot, etc, just as much if not more than she had. It came as a hazard of being around Clark and Lana knew that. Of course, most of those times Lois got herself in trouble with her reporting style or by helping Clark. Their lawyer was right though. It had no bearing. She would never endanger a child.

"Overruled," said Judge Taylor. "Miss Lang, can you please clarify how this is relevant?"

"What's to keep her from getting Evan into those situations? It's just too dangerous an environment for Evan to be in."

Lois was ready to let Lana have it. Lana had no job. She was living off of Nell, which she was sure wasn't a lot for 3 people to live off of. She was a liar, an extortionist, which made Lois wonder where Lana's millions had gone, and Evan had made it clear that Lana was a drinker too. There were probably things Lois didn't even know about. There could be murder and kidnapping on her record for all she knew. Lana had pushed her through glass and sent her to the hospital in her power-hungry rage. She had every intention of sharing that with the judge. Then she looked at Evan. Could she really do that to him? Turn this into a who-can-sling-the-most-mud fight? He loved his mother. She was clearly good to him, even if she wasn't necessarily a good person. She looked at Clark. He looked downhearted. He didn't know how to fight this. Their lawyer didn't look hopeful either. Maybe if they refused to fight fire with fire. The judge would look on that favorably. Lana was finished and Lois defended herself. "I'm not perfect. I drink, but not very often and not to excess. I made a mistake a few weeks when I wasn't feeling well. I can assure you I won't be picking up the bottle again anytime soon, maybe never. As for the danger, I have a dangerous job. I'm a reporter that goes after hard stories and that can lead to sticky situations, but are cops not allowed to have children because they have dangerous jobs? Superman does come to my rescue and I would consider that a good thing. I would never get Evan involved in my stories. My husband is a good man. He's the best. He's a good father too. I've seen it. It would be foolish not to let Evan have his father in his life. That's all I have to say."

"This court is going to take a short break," the judge said, "and will reconvene in 10 minutes with a decision."

Evan was looking restless and bored. Nell took him out of the courtroom for a walk. Clark wasn't looking very cheerful. Lois felt guilty. If it wasn't for her bad record, he would win this case hands down.

The judge came back at the appointed time. "The court has reached a decision--"

Nell came running into the courtroom screaming, "He's gone! He's been kidnapped!"

TBC