Chapter Eleven

Clark was waiting on General Lane, when he came down from his motel room at the Metropolis Inn. As soon as the older man approached, Clark shook his hand.

"Hello, Mr. Kent."

"Hello, General Lane, sir. Please, call me Clark."

"Well, Clark, you said you had something you wanted to talk to me about."

"Yes, sir. I do not know if Lois has told you, but we have been dating for the last seven months. Since this is going to be our first Christmas together as a couple, I wanted to surprise her, by getting you and Lucy to come to the farm for Christmas dinner." As Clark was talking, he tried to keep the nervousness out of his voice. It was hard, but he managed it.

"I am glad to see that Lois is finally with someone that at least has some manners." The General chuckled.

Clark grinned.

"Well, sir, my parents did try to raise me to be respectful."

"I have to say they did a good job. If there were more men like you in the world, maybe we would not need an army."

"I would have to agree, sir."

General Lane looked at Clark for a moment.

"Is there anywhere in this city that a man can get a bite to eat, without being charged an arm and a leg?"

"Yes, sir. There is a diner right around the corner."

"Well, I would suggest that we get a bite to eat, while we talk."

"Sounds good to me, General Lane."

The two men walked in silence to the diner. Once they were seated comfortably, a waitress came over to take their order.

"My name is Veronica. I will be your waitress today. What may I get you to drink?"

"I will have a cup of coffee, please," said the General.

"I will have the same, please," said Clark.

"Okay, I will be right back with your coffees, and then I will take your orders."

Once Veronica was gone, the General turned back to Clark.

"What made you decide that you wanted to have Lucy and I come for Christmas dinner?"

"Well, I have been trying to figure out what to get Lois for Christmas for the last two months. Then, the other day, it hit me. She hardly gets to see you or her sister that much. What better Christmas present than to have her father and sister to spend Christmas with her?"

Sam stared at Clark, trying to figure out if this young man was for real. Any other young man would have spent money on his girlfriend, but Clark Kent seemed to know Lois' true heart's desire and was trying to make it happen.

"I must say, Clark, I am impressed. I do not know many; scratch that, any young man that would do something like that for their girlfriends. You must really care about my daughter to want to do something like this for her."

"Actually, sir, I am in love with your daughter. That was something else I wanted to talk to you about."

"Oh?"

"Yes. You see, I thought since everyone would be there, I could go ahead and ask Lois to marry me. If that is okay with you, that is."

"Are you sure you are ready to do that, son?"

"Yes, sir, I am. I have been thinking about it for the last two months. I have known Lois since my senior year in high school. True, we did not always get along, but now, I cannot imagine my life without her. She means the world to me. I will try to make her very happy if she will have me."

"Well, Clark, I am very pleased to hear that. I would be honored to have you as a member of the Lane family. Therefore, yes, you have my blessing to ask her. Do not worry; I will not say a word. Oh, and, yes, Lucy and I will be there on Christmas morning as a surprise for Lois."

"Thank you, sir."

"Since you will most likely be a part of the family, son, you can call me Sam. What time shall we be there?"

"I think around five would be fine."

"Okay, see you then, Clark. Give your parents my best."

"All right, Sam, I will."

Sam left without ordering anything to eat. Clark paid the bill, and left. He could not wait to get back home. If everything went according to plan, then by this time next year, he would be married to the only woman, who could make his heart soar. Lois Lane was in for a real Christmas.

Disclaimer: See my bio for disclaimers.