So much had been said that morning she couldn't take back, and Lois wasn't sure that she wanted to.
She'd been given a glance into a life that she never thought she'd be able to have with a guy she never dreamed she'd want. And it was odd to think that it was possible, to have him and children.
Well him anyway, children were another matter.
If there came a time that they decided to make their relationship permanent, Lois could live with adopting children if they couldn't have any of their own. The Kent's had adopted Clark and to anyone who didn't know that, they would've have just assumed that Mrs. Kent had carried him herself for nine months.
That's how it would be with her and Clark.
Still.
A little baby boy that looked like him, a little Smallville who grabbed hold of her heart the way his father had and made her insides melt like butter, the same way he had.
Smallville.
Her former dorky farm boy who was on his way to becoming quite the ace reporter kissed her like she was the only woman in the world for him. And he did because she was, Lois had no doubts in her mind about that.
For the first time she felt that they'd each put their "Ghosts of Relationships Past" firmly behind them, once and for all. And the window into a possible future for them only reinforced it for her.
"Hey, you almost packed?" Lois felt a familiar pair of hands drop gently onto her shoulders and a soft kiss pressed to her hair.
"Don't tell me, you're all ready to go?" She smiled and reached behind to put a hand on his cheek.
"All packed and I didn't even use super speed." He laughed and gave her shoulders a squeeze before taking her hand and kissing her fingers. "I just called the front desk. They're sending up a bellman in a few minutes to come get our bags."
She nodded.
"Are you okay?" Clark turned her around and she could see the concern on his face. "You've been pretty quiet all morning."
"Most people wouldn't consider that a bad thing, Smallville." She smiled at him. "I think they'd be kind of relieved that I'm not running my mouth for awhile."
The moment she said it, she knew what he was going to do; and he did.
He kissed her.
"I suppose you're going to make a habit of doing that?" Her knees were shaking and she held onto his shoulders for support.
"Since you don't seem to mind, why shouldn't I?" His eyes were sparkling with amusement. "Catching you off guard is just a bonus."
"Well as much as I like all the manhandling, I'd like it even more if you'd take one last look around and make sure we didn't forget anything." She gave him a gentle push and he stepped back, but his hands were still at her waist.
"I'd rather look at you."
'I'd rather you did too', but- "I'd rather not leave anything behind."
"I'd rather not leave." He sighed. "But I know we have to."
Lois reached up to run a hand through his hair and she nodded. "We do. Things have changed since we got here and now it's time to see how it's going to work in the real world."
"Listen to you." He smiled at her. "You sound like me."
He was right.
"Yeah, well don't let that go to your head. It's probably not going to happen again."
"Probably?" Clark lifted his eyebrows at her and she punched his shoulder, which only made him laugh.
"You're a bad influence, Smallville." She kissed his cheek. "The next thing you know, I'll be out in the barn milking the cow."
"I think she'd appreciate it if you didn't." He kissed her cheek in return and stepped back as she took aim at his shoulder again, and missed. "Did you take a look around yourself?"
"You forget who you're talking to, Clark." Lois gave him a pointed look. "I graduated from the General's School of Squaring Away a Room. So to answer your question-"
He put his hands up in mock surrender. "Point taken."
"I knew you'd see it my way."
"You usually make sure that I do." He kissed her cheek again. "But to answer your question, I did take a look around. You may have learned at the General's School, but I have x-ray vision."
"Show off."
"It's only showing off if you're impressed." He teased as he picked up her dress bag from the bed and gave her his most innocent look. "Are you?"
"No." She deadpanned and he nodded.
"Just checking." Clark seemed really pleased that her attitude toward him hadn't changed, knowing about the Blur and what he could do.
A knock at the door of the suite had Lois closing her suitcase and zipping the lid shut. "You go ahead, I'm right behind you."
"I can take that if you want." He offered as Lois pulled the suitcase off of the bed with a shake of her head.
"I've got it, so go." She pointed a finger toward the door of the bedroom.
"Going." He smiled and walked out into the sitting room. Lois started to follow him, but found herself stopping at the door of the bedroom and turning around. So much had happened in that room, in the suite if she were to be perfectly honest about it and she really wanted to stay.
"Come on, honey." Clark's voice was gentle. She felt her suitcase being slipped out of her hand and his hand replaced it. "It's time to go."
'I know.' She said silently and nodded.
When they got to the door of the suite, Clark handed Lois' suitcase to the bellman and he placed it on the luggage carrier. After Lois closed the door behind them, he pulled the cart toward the elevator.
Clark kept a hold of her hand and she walked with him, clasping his tightly.
The only other time she'd had this hard of a time leaving a place she'd stayed, was the farm. It was what she'd had to do because she'd never had a real place of her own and wanted that chance.
This was the first place she'd stayed that was theirs, even though they weren't a them, yet. But it was the place that they'd begun to become a them and now she and Clark were going to find out if he and she could be that outside the walls of the Regent Hotel.
When they got downstairs, Clark gave the bellman the keys to Lois' car. And while the luggage was taken outside, Clark checked them out of their room.
He handed the desk clerk the credit card Tess had given them to use and their key cards. "I hope you enjoyed your stay with us."
"We did." Clark told the clerk before giving Lois a smile. "I think it's fair to say that it was more than we expected."
She smiled back at him and nodded.
"That's always nice to hear." The clerk smiled at them both and then looked at the screen. Lois watched as she typed something on the keyboard and then behind her there was noise of a printer.
She turned to get the pages and then put one of the them on the counter. "If you'll look this over and make sure that everything is correct, I'll have you sign it."
Lois stood next to Clark, looking over the charges and she laughed softly. She had ordered room service each morning for breakfast and Clark had ordered dinner the night before.
They could have just as easily gone down to the dining room or the coffee shop for breakfast, but Lois had held fast to her determination that Tess would pay for their stay at the Regent. And she had.
"Everything looks fine to me." He looked at Lois. "What do you think?"
"It's fine." She told him and he took the pen the desk clerk held out. He signed at the bottom and was given a copy of the bill. The credit card was returned along with a receipt.
"I hope you'll remember the Regent Hotel the next time you're in Metropolis. Have a safe trip home."
"We will, thank you." Clark pulled his wallet out of his pocket and tucked the card away while Lois picked up the receipts, folded them in half and put them in her bag. "You ready to go?"
"As ready as I'll ever be." She sighed softly and he took her hand again and squeezed it. "Let's go home."
It was his turn to nod without a word and tugged her gently toward the front entrance. She felt his hand on her back when he guided her out ahead of him and as he came to a stop next to her, the car was waiting for them. The engine was running, with the driver and passenger doors open.
The valet had just closed the trunk of her car and approached Clark. "You're all set."
"Thank you." He walked to the passenger door and waited for Lois.
Always the gentleman. The thought crossed her mind as she put her hand on his that was resting on the top of the door frame. "Always the Boy Scout, aren't you, Smallville?"
"And I have the merit badges to prove it." He leaned in with a smile and a soft kiss. "I can show them to you if you want."
"Just get me home." She kissed him back. "That's what I want."
"Home it is." He nodded his agreement as Lois got into the car and sat down. And before he closed the door, he glanced next to her. "Seatbelt."
'Yes, Dad.' Lois resisted the urge to roll her eyes and instead reached over to grasp the seatbelt in her hand and secure it just as Clark sat down and closed his door. Lois was about to tease him about his seatbelt when, of course, he reached for it. And when he caught Lois's eye, he was smiling.
He knew what she'd been thinking.
By the time they were underway and headed toward the main road that would take them back to Smallville, Clark reached over for her hand. She squeezed his fingers and could see his smile as he kept his eyes on the road.
For someone who'd never been comfortable with silences, Lois had learned to become comfortable with it, with Clark. He was the only person she knew that she didn't feel like she had to be talking to, to feel a connection.
He didn't have to be holding her hand to feel it either; she was glad he was though.
Lois wasn't aware that she'd fallen asleep until she felt the car turn and heard the crunch of the dirt road under the tires.
They were home.
"Hey, sleepyhead." She felt fingers move against her leg as she found her hand still in his. "We're home."
She really liked the sound of that.
"I forgot what a good driver you are." She opened her eyes as he brought the car to a stop and shut off the engine. "You're the only person I'm willing to sit in the passenger seat for."
"I'll take that as a compliment." He laughed softly.
"You were supposed to." She ran a thumb across his knuckles. "I guess when you learn to drive a tractor-"
"You know, Lois." He stopped the comment he has to know was coming. "Before we got this last minute assignment, I was going to plow under the fields to get them ready for spring planting. And since you still like to tease me about being a farm boy, maybe you'd like to ride with me tomorrow when I do." He shrugged his shoulders, looking expectantly as to what her answer would be.
"And how are we supposed to do that?" Lois had an idea, but she wanted to hear it from him.
"Well, the tractor can only seat one person." His face flushed. "So you'd have to sit on my lap."
And there it was, Clark Kent's version of courtship.
"That sounds like fun." Of course it does, Lois, but she still had to do it. "Crowded on to a tractor with you."
"How about I let you drive?" He lifted his eyebrows in question. "Then maybe it wouldn't be so unbearable."
"Smallville, you do know who you're talking to."
"I know exactly who I'm talking to and I also know you never back down from a challenge." His eyebrows stayed where they were as he waited.
"So this is a challenge then?"
"If it gets you on that tractor with me, you bet it is." Clark was grinning. "So what do you say?"
I know exactly what to say.
"Clark, I drive in Metropolis everyday. Driving a tractor will be a piece of cake compared to that." She felt the need to inform him.
"And I've been with you when you drive in Metropolis, Lois." He seemed to feel the need to inform her. "I don't think it's going to be as easy as you think."
Really.
"We'll see about that." She pulled her hand out of his and opened her door. He answered her bravado with a laugh as she got out of the car; she'd show him.
How hard could it really be?
Clark got out of the car and walked back to the open trunk. "Why don't you come get your suitcases? You can do your laundry while your here."
"I can do my laundry at the Talon."
"I know." He smiled. "But it doesn't cost anything to do your laundry here."
It's costing more than he thinks.
"I just don't want to repack again." Lois wasn't sure why she was balking because it wouldn't have been the first time she'd taken over Clark's laundry room. It shouldn't have been such a big deal.
"All right." He gave her a funny look before he retrieved his bag and closed the trunk. "But you can always change your mind."
"Thanks." She nodded as he walked toward the house. She followed behind, looking up at the familiar yellow farm house that had been home to her, twice.
The thought briefly crossed her mind that she wouldn't mind if it were home again.
Lois nearly walked into him when Clark stopped on the porch. "A little warning next time. Okay, Smallville?"
"Next time watch where you're going, Lois." He was more amused than she would have liked as he set his bag down and turned around. "I may have x-ray vision, but I don't have eyes in the back of my head."
His face flushed again and he gave her a hesitant smile. "Now in my final duty of being a husband, there's something I'd like to do. But I need you to help me."
Did she even need to ask?
"How do I do that?"
"By not arguing with me." He took her hand. "Please?"
He really was so sweet and Lois felt so lucky that she finally had someone in her life who wanted to be with her so much. "Okay."
"Okay." Clark repeated and smiled before he got an arm around her back and as she looped her arms around his neck, he bent to get his other arm under her knees and picked her up.
"I guess carrying me over the threshold once wasn't enough for you, was it?" Lois felt her cheeks warm as she reached over and turned the knob to open the front door.
"I don't hear you complaining." He smiled at her and brushed his lips against her cheek before he carried her into the house.
"Why would I?" She smiled back as he set her on her feet.
"I'm sure you'd find a reason." Clark grasped her firmly by her shoulders and kissed her.
Lois knew she should have objected to the fact that he was manhandling her, again, but she couldn't find it in herself to do it. It was a side of Clark that she'd never seen before the previous week and it was a side of him that thrilled her; as if she'd ever tell him that.
Well, not yet anyway.
"I take it the assignment went well." Lois heard the amused query of a familiar voice. She let go of Clark's neck and turned around, his hands never leaving her shoulders.
Mrs. Kent.
"Mom!" He squeezed them before he let her go and walked toward the kitchen where his mother was standing and hugged her. "Why didn't you tell us you were coming?"
"It was a last minute decision." She put her hand on his cheek. "You look well, son."
"I'm happy." He stated simply and Mrs. Kent smiled at him.
"I can see why." She then focused her attention on Lois, and her face warmed. "Hi, honey."
Clark had his arm around his mother's shoulders and Lois couldn't help but envy the close relationship they had. "Are you going to stand all the way over there, or am I going to get a hug from my second favorite reporter at the Daily Planet?"
And just like that Martha Kent made her feel a part of Clark's family without even trying.
She walked nervously toward the older woman, knowing she'd just seen her in a passionate embrace with her only son, and tried to play it cool. "Only your second?"
"Well I do have a bias." She laughed softly and hugged Lois. "You look well too, Lois. Not working too hard I hope."
"Come on, Mom; this is Lois we're talking about." Clark smiled at her. "Of course she works too hard."
"Then it's your job now to make sure she doesn't." She stated in a matter of fact manner. "Clark, why don't you get your luggage upstairs and Lois can help me with lunch."
Uh oh.
"Sure, Mom." He kissed her cheek and looked at Lois. "Are you sure you don't want me to bring anything in?"
"I'm sure." She nodded.
"Okay." He shrugged easily as he let go of his mother and walked through the living room. Lois watched as he picked up his single bag and brought it into the house, closing the door behind him.
It wasn't until he'd gone upstairs that Mrs. Kent put a hand on her arm. "We'll keep it simple."
There was nothing simple about this situation.
"So what brings you back to Kansas?"
What do you think?
"After the phone calls I've gotten from you and from Clark, I decided to come home for a couple of days to see for myself what's been happening."
More than you know.
"If you would get the bread out of the bread box for me, we'll just have sandwiches." Mrs. Kent moved around the kitchen she hadn't been able to step foot in since August. But to Lois, it felt as though she never left.
"So how was the hotel?" She asked easily. "Jonathan's parents gave us a weekend there as a first anniversary present and we always wanted to go back, but never got the chance."
"Did you stay in the honeymoon suite?" Lois set the bread down on the island as Clark's mother set out a selection of meats, condiments and a head of lettuce. She laughed at Lois' inquiry and shook her head.
"His parent's couldn't afford something so extravagant, but we still had a lovely room with a wonderful view of Metropolis. Our first night there, Jonathan opened a bottle of champagne that his parents had ordered for us and turned out the lights. Then we opened the curtains and the windows and just listened to the sounds of the city and watched the lights.
"But you know something? As beautiful as that sight was, it made me appreciate what I had with Jonathan and his parents, here. There's nothing like the tranquility of farm life to soothe away the stress of the city."
"That sounds pretty romantic." Lois sat down and put her chin in her hand.
"What happened after that was pretty romantic, too." She laughed softly and Lois felt the telltale blush creep across her cheeks.
Mrs. Kent reached over and put a hand on hers. "I'm sorry, honey; I didn't mean to embarrass you. I only told you that because I knew you'd appreciate the gesture."
"Clark ordered room service last night." She nodded because she did and then she smiled. "He ordered champagne, even though he doesn't drink."
"He did that because he loves you." Lois looked up at her, startled. How could she- "It's written all over his face, Lois; yours too for that matter. And I could hear it in your voice when you called me last week, in spite of how afraid of it you were. But something tells me you're not so afraid of it anymore."
"I've never known anyone like him." She finally said. "He's still Smallville, but he's so much more than that."
"My son is a very special young man." Mrs. Kent smiled. "But I guess every mother feels that way about her children."
"Mrs. K, I know how special he is." She caught the eye of Clark's mother. "He told me, everything."
"Well then, it seems as though you're pretty special too." There was a glimmer of unshed tears and then she blinked them away. "When Clark was younger, he was so careful about trying not to be different. He just wanted to be human, which we knew wasn't possible, but we also knew that he could be in danger if the wrong people found out."
The Luthor's, for one.
"The fact that he chose to tell you says a lot about who you are, Lois." She smiled.
"Well, I think he kind of had to since I saw the Blur standing in our room." Lois shrugged. "He couldn't exactly talk his way out of that."
"Don't fool yourself." Mrs. Kent shook her head. "If Clark didn't want you to see him, he wouldn't have stood there waiting for you to wake up."
The migraine.
"He told you about that?"
"There isn't much my son doesn't tell me." She remarked.
"I guess that means he told you about the dreams we've been having." Lois sighed and the look on Mrs. Kent's face was curious.
"He mentioned some dreams he'd been having before you left for the Regent, but he didn't tell me that you'd been having them, too."
"That's because he didn't know until we got to the hotel." She felt her face warm again. "And even that wasn't until they both came to the same conclusion."
"I don't suppose I need to ask what that conclusion was?"
"No!" She sounded defensive and knew she didn't need to be. "The fact is, we were dreaming about each other. But we couldn't see faces until the final dream."
"It makes perfect sense to me." Mrs. Kent smiled at her. "Your hearts were trying to tell you something that your minds weren't ready to think about."
"What's that?" Lois asked, even thought she suspected what the answer was going to be.
"That what you and Clark have and what you'll continue to build on is for a lifetime."
"Then the dreams we had last night make more sense." Lois looked at her and decided to dive in. "It was so real, that it felt as though I was there."
"Where exactly were you?"
"Here." Where else? "It was six years in the future. We already had a little girl that we named for my mom and for you. And I'd just had a baby boy that we named for Dad and Mr. Kent."
"I know it was only a dream." Mrs. Kent squeezed her hand. "But thank you for that."
Lois sighed again and wondered how to tell her, so she grasped the older woman's hand. "Here's the thing. Mr. Kent was alive and he got to see his grandkids."
"Or maybe he was showing you your children." A tear slipped down her cheek. "Jonathan always knew that there was more to the two of you than either one of you would admit.
"The fact is, you've always seemed to have this sixth sense when the other one has needed help and you drop whatever it is you're doing to go do what you can. It's what's made your friendship so enduring and what's going to make your relationship so lasting . I think your dream just reinforces that."
Probably.
"I got to hold him." Lois leaned forward and was only able to whisper; she couldn't quite bring herself to say it out loud. "This little baby boy who looked just like Clark."
"Who did your little girl look like?"
"Me." Lois huffed and Mrs. Kent laughed. "Poor kid. But at least she had Clark's eyes, so it wasn't a total loss."
"Oh, honey." She squeezed Lois' hand. "Any babies that you and Clark may have are going to be beautiful. And before you say anything else, I am aware that it may not be possible. But I'd like to think that since you dreamed it, since Jonathan showed you the possibility," She amended. "that it may happen."
"It wouldn't bother you if we had to adopt?"
It wasn't lost on Lois that she was talking about adoption, when she and Clark weren't even dating.
"Not a bit." She shook her head. "Jonathan and I weren't any less parents because Clark wasn't our flesh and blood. And he wasn't any less our son because another woman gave birth to him.
"Even now, I find myself thanking Lara for having the courage and the strength to give up her only child to save him. I often think about that awful time for them and how easy it would have been to have kept Kal-El with her and Jor-El, but she did what a devoted mother does. She put the well being of her child above her need to have him close.
"I admire what she did because without her sacrifice, we wouldn't have had the joy of raising Clark together for fourteen years. And whether you and Clark are blessed to have children of your own, or raise a child that needs parents, I don't think you'll love them any differently."
"I was hoping you'd say that because it wouldn't matter to me, either."
"But you wouldn't mind going through the experience of carrying his child, would you?"
Tears were threatening to spill, so Lois shook her head. It was too much. Talking about babies and adoption with Clark's mother. She loved Mrs. Kent and had always appreciated her wise counsel when she'd needed it.
But she was still Clark's mother.
She was vaguely aware of losing the warmth of Mrs. Kent's hands, but a moment later she was pulled into a gentle hug.
"It's all right, honey." The reassuring motion of a hand stroking her back helped to calm her. "All of these things that are happening are good things and you shouldn't be afraid of them."
"My track record with men really sucks." She took a shaky breath and found that she was laughing.
"But those relationships were necessary so that you would know when the right man came along." She soothed.
They'd had this conversation before.
"Smallville." Lois laughed again and then hiccupped.
"Yes. Smallville. And I'll bet that in spite of that fact, you can't see your life without him in it anymore, can you?"
"No."
"Lois." She felt hands grasping her shoulders and setting her back as Mrs. Kent got her attention. "New relationships are always scary. But I think they're even scarier when you know you've finally met the right man; the man that you can see having a future with. Clark hasn't said it, but I think he's just as scared as you are."
"I don't think he is." Lois disagreed. "He seems so comfortable with all of this. And I'm trying to be, but- "
"But nothing." Her hands remained firmly on her shoulders. "Do you trust him?"
"Of course." She was surprised Mrs. Kent would ask her that. "I trust him with my life."
"Do you trust him with your heart?"
"Yes." She whispered her answer. "I wouldn't love him so much if I didn't."
"Would it be fair to say that you've never loved anyone as much you love him?" The words came softly, with gentle concern. "Or that he's the first man you've ever imagined yourself having children with?"
"Yes." She nodded. "And that scares me."
"It shouldn't." Came the words she needed to hear. "You know Clark better than you think you do, because of all the men you could have fallen for your heart picked him."
She nodded again.
"Lois, trust that love you feel for him. Trust that he's always going to be there for you, the way Jonathan was for me."
"There is the small matter of the Blur." She pointed out the obvious.
"That's true." She nodded her agreement. "But knowing my son as I do, he's trying to figure out a way to be the Blur and be Clark Kent so that he doesn't have to neglect either one of you. And make no mistake, honey, you're just as important to him as his being able to use his abilities to help the world."
"I know." Lois sighed. "Mrs. K, it was one thing for us to be in that room because it wasn't the real world. Don't get me wrong, it isn't something I regret, at all. But to be back here, the place where it all kind of started, it just brought home how much has really changed."
"I think you're going to find that things really haven't changed much at all." Mrs. Kent tucked a lock of hair behind her shoulder and patted her arm. "You're still Clark and Lois, the two kids who like to get under each others skin and who know each other better than you know anyone else. And you're the woman my son has chosen to give his whole heart to, without any reservations."
As she listened, Lois could feel her humor slowly returning because she gave Clark's mother a pointed look. "He better not have."
"That's my girl." She hugged Lois again. "Now why don't you go out to the car and get your suitcase. You can do your laundry while we eat, if you like."
"Clark said that, too."
"It seems to be unanimous, then." She smiled as Lois slipped of the stool and stood on her feet. "Honey, you always have a home here. I hope you know that."
"Well, home is where the heart is." Oh, please. "Since my heart has always kind of been here."
"And now your heart has made a home with Clark, as his has made a home with you." A tear slipped out of the corner of her eye. "It's what Jonathan and I always wanted for him, to make a home with someone."
"I'll bet you never thought it would be with me."
"It's not that we never thought about it, we just never thought it was possible." Mrs. Kent admitted. "You and Clark are so alike in so many ways, we just didn't think you'd ever see it; I'm glad you finally did."
"So am I." She found herself admitting with a smile and started for the front door before she stopped and turned back around. "I think I will do some laundry while I'm here."
"That's fine, Lois."
"I guess this means you're going to use the rest of the detergent." Clark remarked as he came down the stairs into the kitchen. "It's a good thing I went to the market before we left."
Lois walked back into the kitchen, stopped in front of him before she took his face in her hands and kissed him. "I love you, Smallville."
She then promptly turned around, headed for the front door and put her fingers to her lips. She hadn't given him much of a chance to kiss her back, but her lips tingled nonetheless. "You realize you are on the couch tonight?"
"I do." She could hear the humor in his voice. "But you know I don't mind."
"I do." Lois answered him and then she heard his mother laugh softly as she picked up her car keys from the top of the upright piano and then opened the door. And just as she stepped outside and before she closed the door, she heard his answer.
"I love you too, Lois."
How could she have gotten so lucky?