A special thanks to Stopquitdont for BR-ing! Sorry for the delay in this one. (I'm in the middle of 8 performances of the musical "Oliver!") I promise the final part will be more prompt. It won't be long now... --WD
PS: Feedback is welcome!
* * * * *
Two
by Wanda Detroit
* * 2 * *
July proved to be a difficult month for Lois. It was exceptionally hot in Metropolis, and the newsroom would never feel quite cool enough. Clark tried to appease his wife by bringing a small fan to the Planet and setting it up on her desk. Still, the best remedy was a quick gentle puff of his cooling breath when no one was looking.
And then there were the comments. Sure, Clark had expressed concern about Lois continuing to work this late into her pregnancy. But now the jabs were coming from everyone. “Lois, darlin’, I’m just worried about you exhausting yourself,” Perry had said. Lois knew it was his own subtle way of telling her to stay home.
Plus, as if she didn’t already feel like a beached whale, there were chiding comments from her other co-workers. Jimmy’s innocent line, “Jeez, Lois, you look like you’re ready to pop!” merited a look that could kill.
She would never admit that her pregnancy was making it more difficult for her to do work. Secretly, it was. She was sitting a lot farther from her keyboard these days. Plus, she’d barely start concentrating on what she was writing when an urgent need to go to the bathroom would take hold. She didn’t protest *too much* when Perry gave her some less strenuous assignments.
That morning, Perry had called some of his staff members into the office for a round-table staff meeting. Lois and Clark took their places around the table, research in hand.
“Lois, Clark, what have you got for me?” Perry inquired.
Lois stood up, manila folder in hand. “Well, we’ve been trying to verify the mayor’s involvement in the--” She stopped short, looking bewildered for a second.
“Go on, Lois,” Perry urged.
“The mayor and the--fraud, and--Ah! There it goes again!” Lois pressed one palm to the table in front of her, and the other to her stomach, wincing.
“Lois! Are you having... contractions?” Clark questioned nervously, his arm around his wife’s shoulders.
All eyes in the room were wide and glued on Lois. She nodded, a panic-stricken look on her face.
“Great Shades of Elvis! Don’t just stand there, Clark!” Perry bellowed. “Get her to the hospital!”
“Right, Chief.” Clark tried to gain composure. This certainly was out of the blue! He began to escort Lois out of the room. “Are you in pain, honey? Take deep breaths!”
Lois ignored him. She tossed her manila folder of research to the nearest reporter. “Keep trying the mayor, he hasn’t returned my calls,” she barked.
“Good luck! Congratulations!” the voices echoed in the background, as the couple hurried towards Lois’ car.
* * * * *
Two hours later, Clark reentered the newsroom looking exhausted and annoyed.
Jimmy was the first to approach him. “Either that was the fastest labor in the history of the world, or--”
“False alarm,” sighed Clark, giving a feeble grin.
“Where’s Lois? Is she in the hospital?” Jimmy asked with concern.
“No... She’s resting at home. She’s a little too embarrassed to show her face after what happened in the newsroom,” Clark said, smiling and shaking his head. “Don’t tell her I told you that!”
Jimmy chuckled. “Don’t worry, CK. I won’t.”
* * * * *
Several days later, Clark tried to convince Lois that the false alarm was reason enough for her to start her maternity leave, but Lois wasn’t hearing it.
“I’ll start maternity leave when I’ve got a baby to show for it,” she replied indignantly.
“I hate to mention it, Lois, but you’ve certainly got a baby to show for it...” He placed a palm on her belly, and felt the baby respond to his touch.
Lois was getting tired of people stating the obvious. It was almost as tiring as being asked when she was due, and whether it was twins. Although it wasn’t quite as annoying as having her stomach fondled by perfect strangers.
“Listen, Clark,” Lois retorted, “when I am in labor--*real* labor--I will stay home. Until then, I am perfectly capable of coming to work.”
Clark shrugged. “All right, honey.” He leaned close and kissed her cheek softly. Her stern expression softened.
That afternoon, they headed to a press conference. Lois clutched a manilla folder of questions for the mayor, a determined expression on her face. She pushed through the crowd, belly first, with Clark in tow.
“Lois, are you sure you’re up to this...?” Clark asked skeptically.
Lois gave him a stern look that required no further explanation. The press conference began and Clark finally caught the mayor’s eye. He started to ask the mayor a question when he felt Lois tug on his sleeve. He glanced at her, then back at the mayor... then back at Lois.
‘It’s time!’ she mouthed, her eyes wide and her hands pressed to her swollen stomach.
‘Are you sure?’
She nodded.
The press had crowded so close to the mayor’s podium that it was difficult to make a discrete exit. “Stand back,” Clark announced, ushering his wife towards the back of the room. “Woman in labor, make some room...”
The crowd parted like the Red Sea, making room for the couple to pass. They made it to the door, then to Lois’ car. Clark drove to the hospital distractedly trying to coach his wife through breathing during her contractions.
Another false alarm.
That embarrassment was enough for Lois to finally agree to start her maternity leave early.
