Reality Wins

Lois sighed in contentment and closed her eyes as she held onto her husband. To even think of the title...husband brought a smile to her face. She and Clark were together at last, as they always should have been. She thought about their honeymoon, about walking on the beach together with the warm sand at their feet, on a private island they were on thanks to a certain billionaire friend in Gotham. There was no one else on the island, just the two of them... no one else to ruin-

Click.

Lois opened one eye and was dismayed to find that her vivid thoughts were just a daydream. All of that happened a few days ago, and now here she was on a crowded elevator going up to the bullpen of the Daily Planet. Reality had found her, and it had come in the form of Jimmy Olsen.

"Hi Mr. Jimmy!" Jason chirped from his perch on his father's hip. He waved to the awkward man in a bowtie who stood on the other side of the elevator car, his camera in his hands and ready to take another picture of the unsuspecting couple.

"Oh, h-hey guys!" he waved quickly. "Congrats! I thought I'd take some pictures for well, you know."

Lois shook her head, clearly annoyed. "No, I don't know. We're not even in the bull pen yet and he's off-"

"Lois, come on." Clark gave her an amused look. "He's genuinely happy for us, and is taking pictures. Is that so bad?"

"Yeah Mommy, Mr. Jimmy takes good pictures!" Jason's smile matched his father's perfectly, as did the brilliantly hued blue eyes.

She didn't answer as the elevator finally reached its destination and its occupants quickly made their way out of it. Her mood was momentarily mollified as Clark took her hand in his and led them to the bull pen, allowing her to feel the cool metal of his golden wedding band against her knuckle. She remembered slipping it onto his finger as they gazed into each other's eyes on their wedding day, still not being able to believe their wedding was really happening.

Click.

She made a face and looked over to where Jimmy stood eagerly taking another picture of the happy couple.

He grinned. "You looked so happy there, Ms. Lane. Oh! I mean Ms. Lane-Kent. Missus?"

She ignored him as they continued into the bullpen, and into the staff room for the morning meeting. Gil sat in her usual spot, and so she and Clark were relegated to standing towards the back with everyone else who arrived a little late.

"Alright, people!" Perry began with a slight grumble to his voice. "First, good job on election coverage. Lifestyles, that article on community volunteering in urban areas was great! Second, why did we let the Star get to the Bamford story first?"

He waved a hand in annoyance. "Regardless! Good job. Along with our weekly Superman story, we've got a solid lead against the Times. Stick to your stories you all received in your inboxes! Finish it early, come to me or the assistant editor, and we'll set you up. Oh, and be sure to welcome back Lois and Clark. They've just come back from their honeymoon. DISMISSED!"

"Congratulations Clark...Lois." Gossip columnist Cat Grant sauntered her way to them wearing clothing perfect for going clubbing on a Saturday night, but not for the office at eight in the morning. Lois smiled tightly and mumbled her thanks.

"It's amazing really, Clark." Cat had a nerve to put a hand on his shoulder. "About how long it took Lois to realize what a catch you are. Usually she'd suddenly dump all the guys she dated...convinced us all that she was going to be a spinster."

"Okay then!" Lois cut in quickly. "We're going to go get to work now, 'kay? Bye!" She grabbed Clark's hand and pulled him out of the room before he could respond.

Jason sat at Lois' desk, waiting for his parents to come back from the meeting. Summer had finally arrived, and school was out for the year. In the years before, he would go to a daycamp on the outskirts of the city, but because of his rapidly budding powers, his parents decided it would be better to be able to keep an eye on him. God forbid anything happened at the camp that displayed his superhuman strength! Thus he would have to stay at his parents' mostly boring workplace, and wait 'til the afternoon before his Daddy could fly him to Grandma Martha's all the way in Kansas. After work and on the weekends he and Clark would have the fields around the old farmhouse to themselves, and would work on honing the child's powers.

"Clark, Lois!" Gil Truman came up to Lois' desk as they chatted with their young son, trying to amuse him as much as possible before he would be bored while Mommy and Daddy worked for a few hours.

"Congratulations, and welcome back! It was about time you two got hitched!"

Clark smiled warmly, knowing Gil really meant it. He was a bit of a "hack" as Lois liked to call him, but Gil usually meant well.

"Thank you, Gil. It really means a lot to us."

"Yeah well, the way the two of you were close for years before this, it was inevitable! Look!" he pointed quickly at Jason. "You even had a kid together before you admitted you loved each other!"

Lois slowly turned to the man with an incredulous look. Who in their right mind said something like that? In

front of the said child, no less? Clark would admonish her gently when she said it, but Gil was one heck of a hack.

"Okay Gil." Lois smiled sweetly as she could, grinding her teeth while she was at it. "We get the point."

Oblivious, the man went on.

"So when are you going to have another kid?"

Lois looked up in time to see Clark's mouth gape open, and she felt her face getting warmer with slowly boiling anger. What was it with this man that got her so annoyed?

"Uh." She cleared her throat. Good question. "We haven't discussed that. Now if you don't mind?"

"Oh! Right! Work! Well congrats again, guys!"

If laser beams could shoot out of her eyes, they would have been right then as Lois glared at the back of the retreating man's head. Clark took her hand in his as he slowly sat in the chair next to Lois'.

"Alright there, Lo?"

She shook her head. "Yeah. It's just a bit much. You know, reality sneaking up on us all of the sudden."

As it was, her reality consisted of nosey colleagues, her super-powered five year old son, stories of mad scientists, crooked politicians and a man in tights who flew around Metropolis. It could only get more interesting, or as this day was going, more annoying.

"Mommy?" Jason tugged at Lois' sleeve excitedly. "Is Mr. Gil right? Am I going to have a brother or sister?"

Before she could open her mouth in reply, she was beat to it. That was happening a lot today, she noticed.

"Oh my gosh, you guys!" Jimmy crouched down between their chairs and stared at them with wide eyes. "Did I just hear that you're going to have another little one?"

Lois looked around, knowing Jimmy had gotten the attention of some of the reporters around them, the nosey people! Some of the gossipy female interns quickly stood together and whispered conspiratorially to one another as they stared at Lois with one eye. The older men and women, used to and appreciative of the Lane/Kent dynamic for years now chattered happily amongst themselves with "what ifs" and "oh I hope it's a girl!" and a lone "but Lois doesn't even like kids!"

"NO!"

Lois put down her notes with a loud smack and glared at Jimmy, causing him to stand up and slink away before Lois' wrath unraveled some more. Mad Dog Lane wasn't just a name, it was a force to be reckoned with.

"LANE! In my office! You too, Kent! Leave the kid with Jimmy." Perry beckoned the two with a hard look, having heard from the gossip chain already about the possibility of one of the star reporters going on maternity leave.

The two looked at each other with a sigh and stood, leaving their son at Lois' desk before slowly making their way to the Editor in Chief's office.

"Sit." Perry was curt, eyeing them both as they sat in the large leather chairs in front of his desk. "Anything you want to tell me?"

"Uh, thanks for the gift basket?" Clark smiled lopsidedly, trying to feign ignorance a little too much. Lois stole a glance at him with a wry smile and a shake of her head. Nice try, Smallville.

"Come on, kids. You're like the Brangelina of the Bull Pen, you can't get anything past this lot." Perry pointed past them to the people behind the glass wall, who were trying to look like they were working but were more intent on looking towards the Chief's office to see what was going on with Lane and Kent. Lois leaned forward, ready to argue as usual.

"Perry! There's nothing to talk about! We're just trying to have a nice first day back, and so far it's been anything but!"

"Lois, Clark." Perry sighed, weary so early in the fight. "Just tell me. Are you or are you not going to be parents again?"

"No, Chief." Clark sighed, wondering why they were even having this conversation to begin with.

"Yes." Lois said it quickly, knowing no matter how quickly she did Clark would hear it anyway.

Lois and Clark looked at each other, both confused over each other's responses.

"Lois?"

"Clark."

"Okay, okay." Lois stood and put her hands up. "I found out a month ago, okay? I was going to wait 'til your birthday to tell you, Clark."

Beside them, Perry put a hand to his forehead as he felt a stress induced headache creeping on. Great. Lois on maternity leave. That worked out so well for the paper last time, too. Oh well. At least Kent was here this time. He smiled, genuinely happy for the crazy kids.

"Congratulations, you two."

Clark scooped Lois clean off her feet into a tight hug, and kissed her gently, trailing soft kisses up her jaw and down to her neck. Smiling, she responded in kind as she wrapped her arms around his neck. She looked past Clark's shoulder to see Jimmy jumping up and down in happiness with a jubilant Jason in his arms as the people around him did more of the same. As annoying as the first day back had been so far, this was definitely a happier part of it.

But Brangelina? Really?

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