Chapter 14: Mama Knows Best

a/n:- wow! sorry about the delay but uni is taking up more time than i thought (hopefully a sign i'm not failing). i'm on holdiays for the week so i'm hoping to have the finished in the next few days. anyway hope this was worth the wait...

Chapter 14: Mama Knows Best.

'Holy crap, she's Mother Theresa.'

'What?'

Lois looked up from the old issue of the Daily Planet she'd been reading to find out exactly who Chloe had decided was Mother Theresa. It took her seconds to remember that Chloe was checking up on Callen and that it was the good doctor she'd deemed Mother Theresa.

'This woman is too good to be true,' Chloe elaborated.

'So?'

'So?' Chloe repeated. 'This woman can't possibly be this good in real life. She's got dozens of awards, not one strike against her, nothing but good, good, good.'

'She's evil?'

'Has to be.'

'And if by some weird twist of fate she's all she seems?'

'Then you have yourself one very good doctor for your baby.' Chloe seemed to choke on the word baby but other than the slight shock of it all she seemed genuinely happy for her cousin. 'Oh.'

'Oh?'

'There might be a slight problem.'

'She actually is evil?' Lois cracked.

'No,' Chloe smiled. 'Maternity leave.'

'Maternity leave as in "go home Sam, don't want you bursting in the office" or laze around the house doing some good old fashion bonding, maternity leave?'

'The latter.'

'Oh well that's easily fixed. You got a number for me?'

Chloe scribbled down the number and handed it to Lois before turning back to her computer with a frown.

'You sure you want to do this? It's a big risk letting someone in and its not just Clark you need to worry about anymore there's a baby to think about.'

'I know, that's why we need to do this,' Lois said, reminding Chloe of the reasons she'd already given. 'It's like I said; it's all well and good in theory that the baby takes after Clark but what if it doesn't? What is it takes after me? What if something's wrong?'

'I know, I know, I'm just worried about the two—three—of you.'

'I know.'

With a quick wave and a promise to have dinner Lois left the Planet, already dialing the number Chloe had given her. Chloe watched her go and only when Lois was completely out of sight did she allow herself to fully react. She slumped down in her chair and took deep calming breathes. Lois was pregnant. Lois was pregnant with Clark's baby. Lois and Clark were going to have a baby. Yeah, she couldn't quit wrap her head around that one. She could see all the facts lined up in her head, all the words in the right order for an explanation and yet there was a huge gap between knowledge and comprehension.

Lois Lane and Clark Kent were having a baby.

'Holy crap!'

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Despite being on maternity leave Sam seemed perfectly happy to arrange an appointment When Lois expressed a need for a very, very good and trustworthy doctor, she jumped at the chance to get out of the house and even arranged to make the drive to Smallville for the initial interview. Happy that she had made some form of a plan Lois decided now was the time to talk to Martha. After all it would be a little tough explaining why they were interviewing a doctor in her living room without giving her some form of a heads up.

Ultimately, though, she would leave the decision to tell Martha up to Clark. With Sam Callen coming in two days she hadn't really given Clark much time to break the news but he decided to do it over dinner with Chloe along for moral support. Ever the perceptive one, Martha did not miss the tension and the looks the three were shooting each other. And with less than twenty four hours before the doctor showed, Clark decided to get it all out at once.

At least he promised he would have it all out by dessert.

They were halfway through the roast when Lois kicked Clark under the table, a not so subtle reminder that they were in fact on a time limit.

'Uh, mum?' Clark asked hesitantly. 'I kind of have some news.'

'News?' Martha frowned, that could go either way and the anxious way Lois and Chloe exchanged looks did not instill Martha with faith.

'It's about me. And Lois.'

'Oh?'

Chloe couldn't help smirking into her fork at the amused look Martha was trying not to show. Obviously she wasn't as blind to their relationship as she appeared.

'We're dating.'

Any quicker and Martha would have missed it. As it was, she heard loud and clear, a huge smile spreading across her face at the news.

'That's wonderful, I'm happy for you both.'

'Thanks mum,' Clark murmured.

'That means a lot,' Lois said uneasily.

It was all well and good being happy because they were dating but being happy about your teenaged son and his girlfriend having a baby was another matter entirely. Lois respected Martha and she didn't want to see her disapproval but it was time to get this out in the open.

'There's more,' Clark said slowly, 'she knows my secret.'

Martha looked around the table and took in the silence as they waited for her to react. She was feeling happy that her son had finally found someone he could be with and tell his secret to, and she was more than a little happy that it was Lois and not Lana. As much as she liked Lana she could not stand by and watch as she put pressure on Clark to reveal his secret. When the silence continued Martha realized they were still waiting for her response.

'I'm glad you've found someone you can be honest with, Clark and Lois, I'm quite sure you're capable of handling this.'

'She took it better than I did,' Chloe snorted.

'She made a joke about my clothes,' Clark agreed.

'How long have you known?'

'Just over two months.'

'Oh.'

'Sorry we didn't tell you,' Lois hurried to explain. 'We were just getting used to being together.'

'That's alright; it must have taken some time to get used to knowing how different Clark is.'

'He's still Clark,' Lois shrugged. 'Aside form the fact that I now know not to hit him without warning nothings really different.'

Martha smiled; not quite understanding what Lois was saying but assuming it involved getting injured and catching Clark off guard.

'How about a toast?' Martha suggested. 'To new beginnings?'

'Uh, maybe we can hold off on the toast until we tell you the next bit.'

'There's more?'

'Oh boy is there more,' Chloe muttered.

Martha raised her eyebrows at Chloe and turned to face her son who had begun to shift uncomfortably. Moving her gaze to Lois, Martha saw that Lois was similarly uncomfortable.

'Clark, has something happened?'

'You could say that,' Clark nodded.

He took a deep breathe and then the words were out.

'Lois is pregnant.'

Martha's fork clattered to the floor. No one moved. No one spoke. Until:

'Oh.'