The weather was dry, but it wouldn't stay dry long. Clark had to get the alfalfa in before rain came, and the crop molded. Plus, it was at its peak and the better the condition, the more cash it yielded, which he needed with a child on the way.
It was an easy job, at least for him, because it required no physical exertion, but as he had to do everything slow, so no one would start asking how he ran a farm so efficiently almost single-handedly, it left him with a lot of time to think.
It wasn't always a bad thing. The work always made him feel close to his father. He wondered what he would say if he could see him now. He sure could use his advice.
Despite his bold promise to Lois to lend a hand with Chloe, he wasn't as close with her as they'd been in high school. Though they still exchanged friendly words and smiles when they ran into each other, their lives had taken different directions. Still, he hoped he could do something to help. As soon as the crop was in, he'd try.
Lois was as right as she had been about the outcome of his life. He could do so much more with his life than farm and police work. He'd seen in the papers how just last night Green Arrow had up against a villain who called himself Everyman.
Everyman had been an experiment of Lex Luthor's though he couldn't prove it, a man turned cannibal with the ability to shape shift into whatever living matter he'd consumed. Green Arrow had defeated him but only barely. If Clark had been there, he could have defeated him in an instant and saved him the trouble and risk to his life.
Instead, he had to content himself to keeping Smallville safe, and he'd done it. Smallville was as normal a town as one could hope for. His life was as normal and ordinary as he'd dreamed of when he was younger. Why then wasn't he happy?
When he came in for lunch, there was Lana helping his mother set the table. She was a big reason why his life was so normal. In fact, he thought that was the major factor in why he'd been so drawn to her when they were younger. A romance with the "girl-next-door" couldn't be more American. It was kind of like apple pie.
It was she who insisted he handle everything in the regular way. She brought up good reasons. There were cameras everywhere these days: ATM machines, home security devices, satellite images. A person wouldn't have to try very hard to discover any secret identity he might take up. They might even discover it by accident.
And the government would likely see him as a threat. It didn't matter that Earth was the only home he remembered, being from another planet would make him an oddity. Maybe even a specimen to be studied and experimented on. And not only would that put his safety at risk, but they might have a field day with their child as well, and he couldn't do that to Lana or the baby.
She looked up at him with a haggard expression. The anxiousness she carried over being his wife and having his child seemed to be a daily strain for her, a cross to be borne. "Can I speak to you for a moment? In our room?"
He really just wanted a sandwich, not a dramatic conversation, which seemed to be the only kind of talk they could have, but he said yes and upstairs they went.
He took in her folded arms and narrowed eyes. Yep, definitely dramatic. "I saw where you handled that robbery yesterday in the news. Did you use your powers?"
"I handled it like any cop would have."
"I don't like seeing your name in the paper."
"I know, but it's no big deal. It was a local piece."
She sighed, trying to calm herself. "You're right, but I really hate reporters. I was so glad when Lois Lane left early; I was holding my breath the whole time. I'm not surprised she turned out to be one of them. She was always so nosy."
"Really? It seemed to me she always gave people their space. Well, with some things anyway." Personal space had never been a part of her vocabulary.
"Enough about Lois," she said wrapping her arms around him and planting his lips with a kiss.
A kiss that left him cold and made him feel as if he were doing something wrong. Really wrong. "Not now."
"You find me repulsive because I'm pregnant," she complained.
"That's not it." She was as attractive as ever. He couldn't explain why he felt the way he did, but he did.
"Then why have you rejected all my advances lately?"
He didn't know why. It had started the day Lois had returned, but he couldn't tell her that. "Listen, why don't we go have lunch, and-"
She interrupted him with a little cry. "My water just broke."