A/N - This was intended to be the last chapter, but I'll mot likely update with one shots here and there as Callie grows up and Clark and Lois extend their family.

Labor

June, 2014

Lois tapped at her keyboard as she finished her document at a steadfast pace. Well, not just any document. With enough prodding, and some threatening, Perry and Clark had conceded and let her have one little article that she could write so she had something to do while at home. She was also overdue with the baby by over a week and was getting even more restless, especially since the fun suggestion of 'have sexual intercourse to go into labor' was off the table. The article she had in front of her wasn't what she was used to writing, it was essentially a fluff piece about pet adoptions, but she took pride in it anyway. It was her work.

Putting her finishing touches on it, she spell checked it once more before opening up her email and getting ready to send it off to Perry. She clicked the "send" button, but nothing happened. She then clicked it a few more times and still there was nothing indicating that the email had been sent. The stupid cursor just kept going around in circles. A pop-up then came on her screen and stated she wasn't connected to the network.

"What the hell?" she grumbled.

Her reporter instincts kicked in. Pushing the laptop cart away, she slowly got herself off of the bed. She walked down the hall carrying her laptop and to the nook in the living room that housed their desk with their other computer and printer. She plugged the laptop into the printer with the cable and tried again. She tapped her foot as the printer took its sweet time to print her article. She snatched it up from the tray and then tried to look below to see the router. She thought she saw a wire out, but she was in no position to get to it.

However, she did feel better than how she had been. She had woken up with more energy than normal and relished in being able to feel like her old self, even for a little bit. Looking down at her hardcopy of the story, she bit her lip. The story was due that day, and while Perry would probably push the deadline for her, she saw no use in that. She didn't want special treatment. She was a reporter, damn it. If she had her story done, and it was due, then she was going to get it to the Planet.

Reaching for her phone, she plugged in Jimmy's number. Tapping her foot on the ground she huffed, "Come on, Jimbo. Pick up."

To her annoyance he didn't answer.

"That's it."

Lois walked over to the table beside the front door and grabbed her hand bag and keys. There was a hat hanging up and a shawl that Zatanna had enchanted to block out the sun from strengthening the baby if Lois needed to go out during daylight hours. She got everything on for the safety of her child and herself. Standing in front of the door she toyed with the keys in her hands.

"I can get to the Planet and back in no time." She said to herself. "What Smallville doesn't know won't hurt him."

She knew for a fact that Clark wasn't in the office at the moment; he was out on a super save in South America due to flooding and mudslides. She knew her time was still limited, but she firmly believed she could get this done without any incident. Some exercise might help anyway. She loved her baby, but the fact was she wanted the kid out over a week ago. Leave it to the offspring to take after both parents—never on time.

Waddling to the elevator after she locked the apartment door, she managed to get in and out easily. She got through the lobby and made it to the curb. She paused for a moment when she felt a slight pressure in her belly, but she shrugged it off. She adjusted her hat and shawl. It was a cooler day, even in June, so it didn't seem as awkward for her to have it around her. She waved her hand for a cab, and to her luck, one saw her immediately and stopped.

"Couldn't have missed me…" she mumbled.

Opening the door, she slowly got in and told the driver to take her to the Daily Planet. The ride was hit with some traffic, but still short, and she paid him as she exited the vehicle. She walked through the groups of people on the sidewalk and made it through the spinning doors. Doing her best to keep herself from drawing attention, she made it to the middle of the lobby and headed for the sets of elevators.

She let out a breath of relief for making it through the first step of getting to her destination. Now, she just needed to make it upstairs and then back to the apartment. Standing in front of the doors she pressed the button and waited as the numbers counted down until it reached her.

"Miss Lane?" A small, surprised voice asked behind her.

She turned to see Jimmy Olsen standing there, his camera hanging from his neck.

"Hey, Jimmy." She said casually.

"Um, I'm pretty sure that you're still supposed to be on bed rest. CK told us that under no circumstances are we to allow you here."

"Is that right?" She asked as the doors opened. She crossed the threshold and turned to look at him. "Try and stop me."

Jimmy rushed in before the doors closed and hit the emergency stop. "Miss Lane, seriously. Why are you even here?"

She rolled her eyes and pulled out the papers she had tucked away in her purse.

"I'm hand delivering my story since the internet is out at my house."

"You could have called a messenger to pick it up."

Lois crossed her arms and rolled her eyes again, saying, "I called you."

Jimmy grimaced as he checked his phone and put it back in his pocket. "Still…"

"Jimmy, I'm fine. I haven't had this much energy in a while, so let me use it and I'll get home before Clark knows, okay?"

He shook his head, "You know he's going to know."

"Of course, I know he's going to know. He knows I know he's going to know."

While Jimmy took a moment to think about that, she released the emergency button and the elevator started moving upward.

"Lois!" He complained. "Not only is CK going to be mad, but think about Perry. He's going to blow his stack!"

"Let him get his 'Great Cesar's Ghosts out of the way and he'll be fine."

Suddenly, the elevator came to a jarring halt. Lois slapped her hand against the wall to still herself. She then placed her other hand on her stomach and rubbed on top of where her baby was.

"Jimmy, what the hell?" She said angrily.

Jimmy put his hands up in surrender. "I didn't touch it, I swear."

The lights went out and the emergency backup lights shined down on the two passengers. Lois was about to open her mouth to say something when all that came out was a painful yelp. Jimmy's eyes were wide with fear as she clutched her belly.

'Son of a bitch, that hurt!' She thought.

He was at her side, trembling. "Miss Lane! Are you okay?"

'What do you think?'

Lois tried to remember her breathing and used it as another painful jolt went through her. She felt something wet trail down her legs and pool beneath her. That's when she knew her water had broken.

"Crap," she whispered.

"Is that?" Jimmy started to ask, his voice cracking. He clutched his camera tightly and accidentally hit the flash button.

"Jimmy, what the hell?!" she cried again.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hit that. I know the whole miracle of life thing is supposed to be beautiful, but trust me, I don't want a picture of that!"

"Jimmy…" her breathing panted as she was hunched over, "call Clark."

'I need him. We need him.'

Jimmy was frozen as he stared at her. "Um…shouldn't I—I use the emergency phone?"

"Jimmy! Call. Clark." She loudly ordered again.

She watched as Jimmy fumbled with getting his phone out of his pocket. Then she screamed Clark's name as another painful contraction ripped through her.


The doors to the balcony flew open from a powerful gust of air as Clark speedily flew into the apartment, undetected to the naked eye. He had just finished helping clean up massive mudslides in Colombia. His heart was still beating quickly from his hasty journey back to Metropolis. He grinned as he thought about the faces of those that he saved, the grateful people that thanked him for his help, and the individuals who were just as heroic as they tried to help him. But, at the end of it, there was one face that he yearned to see most of all.

"Lois?!" He called out. "Lois, I'm home!"

He waited to hear her response, but was instead met with the silence of the apartment. Zooming in and out of the rooms, his fears were realized when couldn't find any sign of her. His eyes fell directly on the table next to the door. Missing were her bag, hat, and shawl, but the bag they packed for the hospital was still present.

"Lois, where are you?" He panicked and he felt the world spin around him.

Closing his eyes, he concentrated on her heartbeat. He picked up on it immediately. He could feel it racing with his own. Something was alarming her. Something was wrong.

Just as he was about to superspeed out to try and get a better detection of Lois' location from the sky, his cell phone began to ring. He looked down and saw Jimmy's name on the screen. Before he could answer it, a piercing noise shook his ears.

"CLAAAAARK!" "Please, please answer CK."

Clark quickly pulled out the phone and put it to his ear. "Jimmy, where are you and Lois?"

"Whoa, how did you-?"

"Jimmy, WHERE IS SHE?!" He sternly yelled, getting Jimmy's mind back on track.

"We're trapped in the elevator of the Daily Planet. Clark, I think Lois is in labor. She's leaking, in pain, and yelling certain choice words at me that would make a sailor blush."

Clark quickly grabbed his civilian clothes, the bag for the hospital, and flew back out the window. He had never moved so fast. He sped through the doors of the Daily Planet building, then pried open the doors to the elevator and leaped up the shaft. He grabbed the bottom of the elevator and pushed it up to the next floor. He then flew up back down, then up the stairs, changing into his civilian clothes, and stopped on the floor he had pushed the elevator up to. He used his strength to pry the doors open once more. Once they were completely open he saw his wife huddled over, doing her breathing, while a stunned Jimmy tried to help her out, his hands hovering over her shoulder not sure if he should touch her.

"Lois!" He sighed, pushing his fallen glasses up with his finger.

She looked up and smiled, "Clark!"

"CK, how did you get here so fast?" Jimmy asked as he moved out of the way once Clark entered.

Clark was quickly by Lois' side, holding her up. She grabbed onto his forearm and let him lead her out of the elevator.

"I was in the building when you called. I was running down the stairs when I saw the elevator doors open. Right place at the right time."

Jimmy smiled, "You sure do have good timing."

Clark gave him a grin and looked down at Lois, worried that this had happened. He wanted to be angry at her, that she had left the house without telling him, but those feelings melted away as all he could think about was that the baby was coming.

"Lo, how far apart are the contractions?"

"I didn't exactly pull out the stopwatch, honey." She replied.

"I'll call an ambulance." Jimmy stated, snapping Clark away from his thoughts.

"No!" He hastily replied. "I got this. Thank you, Jimmy."

Lois winced in pain again. "Smallville," she whispered in a voice only his ears could hear.

His mind was going a mile a minute, as was his heart. He needed to get them out of there, but Jimmy wanted to help. He couldn't blame him. Jimmy was a great friend to them; however, he didn't know the secret they both held. It made it more difficult to try and deter him from assisting, especially at a time like this, and speed out of the building.

"You sure? You need help getting Lois out of the building?"

'You have no idea.' He thought.

"I got it from here." He said, rushing to get them to a section on the floor where they could be concealed. He ushered them toward the exit sign of the stairs he had flown up only moments before.

As they walked toward the door to the stairwell, Lois called out, "Jimmy, my story!"

"Right, Miss Lane!" He said and quickly retrieved her story from her bag.

Clark shook his head and sighed, "You did this all for a story? Why did I think that the days of you getting in trouble for a story were on pause?"

He knew letting Lois write, even the smallest of articles, would bring something like this upon them, but beyond his better judgment he had caved. Well, he hadn't actually considered Lois going into labor in the Daily Planet elevator, but knowing their lives, he should have. Yet, he couldn't deny her her passion to be a journalist, to make her happy, just like she'd never deny his passion to help people. It was who they were.

Even through her visible discomfort she smirked up at him, "You know who you married, Smallville. Now, get me to the hospital!"

"Yes, I do. Hang on."

She grabbed tightly and squeezed his arms as hard as she could when another contraction hit. Wrapping his arms around her, with waves of warmth and love, he stared in the direction of the hospital and grinned. This was it.

And they were gone.


Clark had been careful with his speed to get them to the emergency room of the hospital. They had wheeled Lois to the birthing area, changing her into a hospital gown, putting a bracelet on her wrist, and calling their doctor. To their benefit, Emil was already on call and had instantaneously come down to the ward. Clark had left the room only a few times to let the other heroes know what was going on and that Superman would be on hiatus until further notice (they knew the drill since he seemed to have been going over it again and again for the past month), he made calls to his mother, Jimmy, and Perry—each informing him that they were on their way to the waiting room, and then left a message for both Lucy and the General, as well. Soon, he was back at Lois' side, holding her hand as she was still doing her breathing, discouraging her from pushing until she needed to, and giving her ice chips.

She had been working through contractions for many hours before Emil and a few of the nurses, who had been in and out of the room, informed her that she would need to finally start pushing. Lois had opted out of using drugs, though he heard her regretting her decision, but when asked she still declined. She claimed that she didn't want to harm the baby if she did. Lois had said that she had a high threshold for pain, but Clark could tell by the tension in her shoulders, the tremors through her body, the cringes on her face, that she was trying to downplay how much pain she was feeling.

He looked down at his wife and saw all the strength she had inside of her. She was amazing, but he could also see her wavering. She had tears in her eyes, but through that he still saw her determination. It made his heart grow bigger.

"Lois, you can do this. I'm right here."

Their eyes met. He could see how scared she was. He could visibly see her exhaustion and he knew that she still had work ahead of her. If he could have traded places with her he would have, and he didn't know many men who would say that and mean it.

"You're the strongest person I know." He murmured in her ear.

"Yeah, how about we switch places, Small—" Lois cried out as another contraction went through her body, "—ville.

"If I could, I would." He replied sincerely, brushing back the hair that was sticking to her forehead.

He then rubbed her hand as she tightened her grip on it and continued her breathing. He tried his best to soothe her, even attempting to sing the first verse of "Here We Go Again", which was answered with a glare from Lois. She was getting angry at him and he knew from his reading that it was normal and actually needed.

The point of her pushing was nothing how TV shows and movies had made it out to be. There the process seemed so fast. Push, see the head, bing, bang, boom, baby is out and crying. In the real world, it was taking much longer. From what the nurse, Karen, had explained, the baby has to climb a kind of hill, where it would advance and retract several times before it would finally come out. The baby was still in that cycle, with Lois pushing when they told her to, and him behind her and encouraging her.

To be honest, his focus on the birth had made him lose track of time. He knew it was getting dark out, it had to be. Clark glanced at his watch and saw that it was 7:42. He knew that there was still some time until he got to greet his daughter, but he was becoming anxious—and so was Lois.

"Okay, Mrs. Kent, I'm going to need you to push again." Nurse Karen said.

"That's what you guys have been saying for the last 30 minutes." She replied, her teeth gritting.

Lois pushed again and groaned, perspiration still decorating her forehead. Clark dabbed her head with a towel to try and help her out. He was her anchor.

"God, Smallville, this is all your fault!"

He decided to appease her in her current condition, even though he wasn't alone in the act that created their soon-to-be born daughter.

"Yes, Lois, it is."

"Now, for the big pushes." Emil stated.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me." She moaned. She started to shake her head. "I can't do this, Clark. It's too hard. I can't do it. I'd rather go through the General's summer boot camp again."

Clark's heart broke as he saw his wife look so tired and defeated. He felt helpless that he couldn't take her pain away. He leaned his head over and kissed the side of her forehead. His head then fell on the top of her head. His hand squeezed hers once more.

"Lois, of course you can do this. You can do anything. You just need to keep pushing and we'll be able to welcome Callie into this world." He shifted his head and continued, "We'll be able to hold her in our arms and tell her how long we've been waiting to finally touch her, see her beautiful face, and show her off to the people in the waiting room desperate to meet her. There's only a little left to go, Lo. You can do this."

"Clark…"she cried, grasping his hand tighter and looking up so her eyes could look into his, finding the strength she needed.

"I'm right here. I'm not leaving. I'm right here. I'll always be right here."

He rubbed her back still trying to ease her discomfort.

"Okay." She gasped, "I'm ready."

"Push, Lois!"

Lois' face scrunched up as she pushed. In that moment Clark never thought she had looked more beautiful in his life. The new found determination and strength to give birth to their daughter was written on her face. She was gorgeous and glowed (and glowered) and he loved her so much—no matter what expletives she was screaming out.

"That's it. One more big push." Emil said.

Clark held on to her as she cried out again and pushed. She fell back a little and then the most glorious noise rang in his ears. It was the crying of a newborn baby. Both parents watched as Emil lifted up the tiny magnificent creature. Tears started to blur his vision and, for a moment, he didn't breathe.

"It's a girl." Emil smiled.

"Born at 8:00 pm on the dot on June 26th," the nurse commented.

"Would you like to cut the cord, Dad?" Emil asked.

At first Clark couldn't decipher the words, he was too busy staring at the baby the doctor was holding. The baby of Clark Kent and Lois Lane-Kent. Their baby. Their daughter. He was officially a dad.

"She has quite the set of lungs." The nurse commented.

"She gets that from her mother." He answered as his feet finally enabled him to move.

"Very funny, Smallville." Lois said, out of breath.

Clark was able to perform the task and felt another bond forged with his newborn. She was then whisked away to be cleaned off and weighed. Soon his daughter was wrapped up in a red towel and handed over to him.

"She looks very healthy." The nurse told him.

He smiled as held his daughter for the first time. She was so small and was still crying a little. He couldn't take his eyes off of her. She was perfect. Everything about her was perfect. Perfect fingers. Perfect toes. Perfect blue eyes. He looked over to Lois who was staring on in amazement. He smiled wide as he brought Callie over. He carefully handed the baby to her and she smiled just as wide and sniffed back her tears.

"Look at her, Clark. Isn't she the most perfect thing?"

"Yes, she is."

He kissed Lois' forehead and gently let his knuckles graze over Callie's forehead. The baby had finally ceased her cries as she looked up at the two adoring faces.

"Lois…I love you so much. I can't even put into words how much I love you and how incredible you are. How we now have a beautiful daughter, and…thank you."

She looked down at the baby and then back up to him.

"I love you, too. This baby wouldn't be here either without your help." She smirked. "So, thank you."

He smiled down at his girls, but his smile faded as another nurse came to take Callie.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Lois asked, moving to get up.

"We just need to take the baby for some tests, she'll be back soon."

Clark quickly looked at Emil who said, "Don't worry, Clark. I'll be in charge of all the results."

Clark nodded, remembering that Emil had all of this covered for them. That any abnormalities the baby might have in the tests would only be seen by him.

"Lois, we still have one more task for you. You ready?" The doctor said.

She looked at Clark and nodded. "Ready."


Clark had reluctantly left Lois' side for a few moments to greet all the people anxiously waiting for news about the baby in the waiting room. He couldn't stop the goofy grin on his face as he told his mother, Jimmy, and Perry that they had a perfect baby girl, Callista Larella Kent, but Callie for short. His mother had smiled at the names, knowing full well how and why her granddaughter had been granted them. Perry handed out cigars to strangers and, as Clark walked everyone down to the nursery, Jimmy wanted to know which one in the row Callie was so he could get the first picture of "Baby Kent". He pointed his daughter out and felt pride swell up in his heart.

His daughter.

He was a father. A father. The thoughts of that produced sadness in his heart among the pride.

'I wish you were here, Dad,' He thought.

"Your father would be so proud, Clark." His mother said as if reading his thoughts.

He smiled at her and gave her a hug, happy to know she knew what he was feeling, but out of the corner of his eye he was distracted when saw Emil walking down the hallway. He could tell by the look on his face and the tension in his walk that something wasn't right.

"Lois." He uttered and ran to meet the doctor. "What is it?"

Emil pulled Clark aside and started walking him back to the room where Lois was.

"Lois seems to be experiencing postpartum hemorrhaging." Clark stopped walking, his eyes wide with fear. "While bleeding is expected, Lois is losing more than she should be. We've given her IV medication and we're doing everything we can to stop the bleeding."

His eyes widened even more, if possible, and for a second time that night he felt he couldn't breathe. "Bleeding?! But I thought the nurse said that was normal."

Clark knew the nurses were checking on her periodically, but he didn't think anything was serious. She had been fine, well, until now.

"It is, but the bleeding increased when a nurse was helping Lois out of the bed. It hasn't stopped. If it doesn't stop with the means we're using, she may have to go into surgery."

"Surgery?"

Emil nodded.

Clark moved past the doctor and straight to the room Lois was in. She was hooked up to different machines now and he knew she caught the concerned look on his face right away.

"Smallville, I'm fine." She assured him.

He marched right to her side. "Losing blood isn't fine, Lois."

"Hey, I think I know a thing or two about losing blood over the years."

"Not helping." He said with a frown, thinking about all the times Lois had hurt and bleeding.

"Hey, I have a new adorable baby daughter and an equally adorable husband to be taking care of. I'm fine."

Clark leaned over and kissed her on the lips sweetly. Pulling back from the kiss he let his lips hover over hers. "I love you, Lois."

"I love you more, Clark."

He grinned and gave her another peck on the lips before fully pulling away. The nurses were still watching over her, touching her IV, massaging her uterus, and writing in Lois' chart. He couldn't lie that she looked pale and worn-out, but he didn't want to think negatively. Lois was a fighter and he knew that. Soon, the color would be back in her face and she'd be fine.

"Now, after delivering your watermelon sized daughter and contemplating letting you ever touch me again, I'm going to close my eyes and rest because I'm tired and a little cold. These guys know what they're doing. So, I'm going to rest and not stress out about this because they say it's bad if I do. If that's okay with you."

He chuckled, "Yes, Lois. Rest and Callie and I will be waiting." He then tilted his head with a grin, "Plus, everyone out in the waiting area and on their way here."

Lois sighed, nodding and closing her eyes. He sat in the chair next to the hospital bed and stroked her hand. He was still grinning as his fingers played with hers when a horrible sound started to ring in his ears. The machines that Lois was connected to started to beep erratically. Quickly, he hopped from his seat and slightly shook his wife.

"Lois?" He pleaded. "Lois, wake up."

"She's gushing!" "She's going into shock!" "Get Dr. Hamilton!"

All the voices blurred together as his focus lay on the woman in the hospital bed. The woman who he loved so much. The woman that couldn't leave him, not after delivering the most precious gift to him. He needed her. He couldn't lose her. Not now. Not ever. She said she wasn't going anywhere. She had said that.

"Lois?" His voice cracked.

"Please, stand back Mr. Kent." The nurse said, moving him out of the way.

He stood in the corner. Superman, some would say the most powerful man in the world, stood in the corner helpless. He watched as the team of nurses accompanied Dr. Hamilton in trying to stabilize his wife and stop whatever bleeding was occurring. He could see the doctor's mouth moving and the nurses supplying him with what seemed to be gauze, but his vision started to blur for the moment.

How could he stand there? She needed him. He needed her.

"Lois." He breathed out again, trying to once again reach her side.

"Clark, please stay back." Emil said, holding up his hand.

"That's my wife, the mother of my child; I can't stand here and do nothing!"

"There's nothing you can do, so please let us work."

His hands fisted into balls at his side as he held down his growl, "She needs me."

"She needs you to let us work on her and save her."

"I told her I wouldn't leave her." He urged, slamming his fist backward into the wall he was leaning against.

He and Emil both looked down at the massive hole he had just created, which had consequently shaken the room.

"What she needs is for you to calm down. I suggest you wait outside and let us work. Be with your daughter and let us save your wife."

Clark's eyes were wide as a nurse guided him out to the hallway. He just stood alone for a few moments as his hearing zoned in on what was happening in the room. His hands cupped his face and then were clasped on the back of his head as he stared at the ceiling and breathed.

"Clark?" A gentle voice asked, as he felt a hand on his shoulder. "A nurse came and got me."

He looked down at his mother and let her wrap her arms around him. He was still in shock and trying to listen to what was going on. His mind was a whirlwind. How did this happen? How could this have happened to Lois? Then he stilled even more, if that were possible.

'It's me. It's my fault.'

It was him. It was because he was Kryptonian. Lois was in danger because of his genetics, because she had been carrying a partially Kryptonian baby. This was his fault.

"Clark, what's going on?" Martha asked.

He held on to this mother and let a tear fall from his eye.

"Lois is bleeding and they can't seem to stop it. I don't know what to do, Mom."

"Honey," she said stroking his head, "the doctor is in there right now. He knows what to do. Hold on to that hope you spread in the world."

"But what if something goes wrong? I can't do this on my own. I need her, Mom. Callie needs her mother. I can't lose her."

"You won't." She assured him.

"This is all my fault."

Martha let go of him and looked him in the eye. "Clark Kent, do not blame yourself for this happening."

"But I'm different. We were so careful throughout this whole pregnancy and then this—."

"Happens in even the healthiest of pregnancies," she finished, "to human couples all over the world. Clark, sometimes these things just happen. It's not because of you being different. So, don't blame yourself. You know Lois would tell you the same thing."

Clark nodded.

"Before it happened…I told her I loved her. "Clark's eyes started to water. "And she told me she loved me more."

"Oh, Clark." He heard his mother say.

He looked down the hallway and yearned to hold his daughter in his arms. To hold a piece of Lois and himself all wrapped into one beautiful little being. His mother stayed by the room while he walked through the hallways to the nursery window and watched his baby girl shift around, her arms flailing in the air. Her eyes danced around, taking in her environment and watching her fists open and close in the air.

Clark couldn't stop his mouth from slightly curving upward, even through all the chaos. The miracle before him ignited something within him once more.

"You just have to have faith, son."

Clark slowly lifted his head and saw his father standing next him, peering through the window looking at his granddaughter.

"Dad?" He whispered.

Jonathan Kent shifted his head and grinned at his son. "You didn't think I'd miss this, did you?"

"Lois, she-something went wrong. I-I'm scared. I was scared about becoming a dad, but this was a curveball."

His father placed his hand on Clark's shoulder. "Life is curveball. I think we know that better than anyone."

"What if I lose her?"

"Your mother and I went through many different experiences. And each time what got us through them was hope and faith. It strengthened us." His father encouraged. "You know Lois. She's a fighter. She's not going anywhere." Jonathan then turned to look at his granddaughter again. She raised her hand up, almost trying to grab at those on the opposite side of the window. He chuckled. "I think she's waving at us." He turned again to his son. "You and Lois have something amazing here. And becoming a parent is scary. You're going to want to protect her by any means possible. But I know you're going to do a great job, Clark. She's going to have you, the both of you, every step of the way."

Clark looked at his father sadly. "I want her to know you."

"She will. With everything you teach her. I'll be right there."

Clark could feel his father squeeze his shoulder and pull him close.

"I'll always be right here." He heard him say as his voice drifted away.

Clark looked to his side and was once again alone. He looked back at his daughter and could feel the hope that had deflated within him start to spread like wildfire. He had to believe that Lois was going to be okay. He couldn't lose that. She had to be. They were waiting for her.

He didn't know how long he had been standing there staring through the glass before he heard someone say, "Mr. Kent." Clark whipped around and saw one of the nurses that had been in the room standing behind him. She looked a little disheveled and his heart constricted.

'No, you would know if something had happened to her.'

His hearing then picked up Lois' steady heartbeat and he breathed in relief. He looked back at the nurse.

"You can come back in now."

He followed the nurse and was met with his mother again. She smiled and said, "Give her a kiss for me and tell her I'll be in as soon they let me."

He nodded and quickly followed the nurse back into the hospital room. Lois still seemed to be unconscious and he looked to Emil who was finishing taking his gloves off.

"How is she?" He asked instantly.

"We stabilized her, were able to stop the bleeding, gave her some oxygen, and gave her blood. She's going to be fine, Clark. She's just still resting and recovering."

Clark shut his eyes and took a deep breath. He nodded to his friend, "Thank you. You have no idea…" he trailed.

Emil placed his hand on Clark's shoulder. "You're welcome, but I'm just doing my job. I'll be back to check on her."

He had trouble getting out his next question. "What happened to her…was it because of me?"

Emil shook his head, "No, Clark. This can happen in any pregnancy. Sometimes you can detect it and other times you can't. It's a daunting experience, some less or more extreme than others, but women go through it and then can go on to have more children."

They were the same words his mother had said, but hearing them coming from Emil gave them a little more weight. The talk of more children, however, made his eyes snap up.

"Will this happen again? I mean, if we have another child?"

"It's hard to say. The risk is there. But, this is in her history now, which means we'll be more prepared to watch her if and when the time comes."

Clark's eyes drifted back to Lois and Emil led him in closer.

"She'll want to see you when she wakes up. We can talk more about this later when she's feeling up to it."

"Is she going to be in the hospital longer because of this?"

"She may have to stay an extra day or two."

"She's not going to like that." Clark commented.

"At least she's still here to be able to not like it."

"I'll remember to remind her of that."

"I'll be back." The doctor said. He patted Clark on the shoulder as he departed.

Clark nodded and went back to the chair next to her bed. Once more, he scooped up her hand and rubbed it. He watched a nurse start to leave and he called out to her.

"Would it be possible to have Callie brought back?"

She smiled at him, "I'll see if I can wrestle the little one in here."

"Thank you."

His attention was back on his wife. His other hand brushed her bangs away from her forehead and he leaned in, giving her a kiss.

"You scared me, Lois. I mean, you've scared me before, many times, but this time," he shook his head, "this time you really got me, I mean it. I thought the worst for a few moments and was so thankful that I told you I loved you and I will continue to tell you, everyday. To you and Callie. Every chance I get."

He couldn't stop touching her. His fingers gliding over hers as his other hand threaded through her hair. There were nights when he performed the same activities when she was asleep in their bed. He was always mesmerized by her and he had to touch her to make sure she was real. He noticed that the coloring of her face had improved and silently thanked Emil over and over in his mind.

Again, with his mind focused on other things, time seemed to be irrelevant. He didn't know much had passed when he finally felt her fingers respond to his hand. Then her body shifted in the bed. She moaned a bit, and then turned her head to face him, her eyes opening slowly.

"Ugh, well that rest kind of sucked."

"Lois!" he smiled.

The relief poured out of him as he heard her voice and saw the twinkle in her eyes. He bent his head down so it was planted right on top of her.

"Hey," she said, her hands weaving through his hair, "honey, what's wrong?" She then began to panic, "Is the baby okay?"

Clark lifted his head up and squashed her fear by saying their baby was fine.

Her brows knitted together in concern. "Then what is it?"

"You don't remember what happened?"

"Should I? I was feeling tired and a little cold, so I closed my eyes and now I opened them back up." She glanced around, her eyes narrowing, "And I am connected to a few more things than I remember."

"Lois, the condition you had, it got worse. You went into shock from losing too much blood. They stabilized you." His hand traveled up to her cheek, cupping it. He didn't want to stop touching her, feeling her warmth. In a quiet voice he explained, "But, there were moments when…" he took a deep breath, "I could have lost you. We could have lost you."

"But you didn't."

"We could have and I didn't know how I would be able to do this alone."

Her head shifted sideways as she said, "Oh, Clark. Even if the worst had happened, and thank god it didn't, but I know you. For her, you would be able to."

He shook his head and then his eyes pierced into hers. "A future without you is not a place I want to be."

She raised her hand and cupped his face, too. "Oh, I know. And I never want to think about losing you either. So, let's be happy and grateful with the way things turned out and move forward from that. Hmm? I'm okay. Our daughter is okay. We made it. "

"We made it." He repeated.

Just then the nurse rolled Callie in. She was the most precious being they had both ever laid eyes on. The nurse lifted the baby out, who started to cry, and handed her to Lois, who found the energy to hold out her arms and receive her. The nurse remarked about coming back to help with the feeding, but the parents were too drawn in to the little bundle before them.

"Hey, baby." She whispered.

Callie recognized her mother's voice and ceased crying.

Lois beamed, "Did you see that, Smallville? She remembers me."

He nodded, "Of course she does."

The sound of his voice made the little one's eyes travel to her father and her feet kicked up in response. The both of them laughed.

They had spent some time with Callie after she had been born, but this was the first time that they got to be with her without the distracted environment due to Lois' earlier condition. Now, without worry, they could relish in their baby girl.

"Looks like she knows you, too. Luckily, that kicking from hearing Daddy's voice isn't on my bladder anymore."

Clark could stop the powerful smile forming on his face. He was a "daddy" and Lois was a "mommy". He loved having that title now. He was more than Clark Kent, more than Superman, he was "Daddy" now.

"You're probably the envy of nursery, aren't you now?" Lois cooed.

"Well, she is half-Kryptonian. That has to give her some edge over the other babies." He commented.

"I think being a Lane gives her that edge, too." She winked.

Clark's hand lightly swept over the dark hair on his baby's head. He just loved doing that.

"Part Kryptonian and part Lane. She's going to be a force to be reckoned with."

"Is that right, Callie Kent? Are you going to be a handful?" she asked.

Their child responded by squinting her eyes and moving an arm up into the air.

"I think that's a 'yes', Smallville." Lois swayed Callie in her arms. "That's okay, kid. We'll learn to love you."

Clark rolled his eyes. "That's nice to say to her, hon." Clark shifted and Callie's eyes looked up at him and squinted again, her mouth curving at the side. "I see you have your mother's smirk."

Callie's eyes then turned to look at her mother and watched her intently.

"And the Kent gaze, it seems." Lois shifted over in the bed, "Get in here, Smallville."

Clark shook his head. "Lois, I don't think that's such a good idea."

"Smallville, get over here." She commanded.

He nodded, knowing if he kept defying her order that it would only get worse, so he gently placed himself beside her in the hospital bed, still not sure if he should be doing it.

"Lo, I—."

"Clark." She cut him off.

"Shut up?" He questioned. She nodded and he confirmed, "Shutting up."

They were both fixated on their daughter as she yawned and her eyes started to flutter closed.

"Long day, huh, little one?" Lois' quiet voice asked.

"Long day for all of us." He said as he looked at the two most precious people in his life.

"But we made it through. Just like we always do."

"Always the hard way."

She chuckled and nodded. "Is there any other way?"

Clark was about to answer when there was a soft knocking at the door.

"Knock, knock."

The new parents looked up to see Martha walk in slowly, holding a pink teddy bear, with Perry, who still had a fist full of cigars, and Jimmy, who had a bundle of balloons floating behind him, a mixture of "It's a Girl!" and "Get Well Soon!".

"The nurse said it was alright to come in, that is, if you're not too tired for visitors."

"Come on in, Mom. Perry, Jimmy, you guys, too." Lois said.

"You sure?"

She nodded and Clark smiled wide as everyone's eyes landed on the sleeping baby girl in their arms.

"I can't believe you guys are still here. It's so late."

"We weren't going to leave." Perry urged then craned his neck to look at Callie, "You kids did well."

"I gave a call to General Lane and to Lucie. They'll be here within the hour." Martha informed them.

"I can't wait to see the General turn to mush over her." Lois laughed.

"That's going to be something." Clark quipped.

"Lois, Clark, she's perfect. Almost born in an elevator, but perfect. How's the new mom?" Jimmy asked.

"She's doing much better, thank you."

There was a sense of relief in the air. The more animated Lois became, the more everyone settled and moved on from the day's previous wild events.

Martha walked next to her son and brushed the baby's hair softly, just as Clark had done earlier. "You are going to be very loved, Callie. By those in this room and those who can't be with us today. You are very lucky."

"We're the lucky ones." Clark added, looking to Lois and then to everyone in the room.

"So, would it be too much if I asked for a group shot?"

"Go ahead, Jimbo." Lois permitted.

Jimmy bounced on his feet and rolled over a cart in the room that seemed just the right height he was searching for. Clark watched as he set the camera up and fiddled with the screen, assuming he was setting the timer. He then rushed back over toward Lois's side of the bed with Perry.

"Okay, on the count of three say, 'Welcome, Baby Kent'. 1…2…3…"

Each individual, minus a sleeping Callie, looked straight into the camera with a gigantic smile.

"Welcome, Baby Kent." They all said in unison.

While the pregnancy journey had seemed too long, and the day had gotten off to a very hectic start, with some more bumps along the way, it had all been worth it in the end. The couple never really did things the easy way and this had been no different. The feisty reporter and her partner/superhero husband found strength in their love and hope to pull through. It was also their strength and love that was now being held in their arms.

The ambiance in the room had shifted throughout the day and, now settled down, it filled love and serenity. For a child deemed a miracle from the start. For a child now welcomed to the world, finally.

The flash of the camera went off, illuminating the room with a bright light, and in it captured one of the happiest moments in the lives of the two new deliriously happy parents, on a day both would never forget.

The Kent's had a new addition to their family and the couple both had the same thought running through their minds:

'…Now it all begins.'