Bun of Steel

Clark/Chloe futurefic
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: These characters belong to the CW and DC Comics, not to me.
Based on a prompt by jlvsclrk.

"Clark... I've got something to tell you."

"What's that, sweetheart?"

"I'm, um, sort of, well..."

"Spit it out, Chlo. Whatever it is, I can take it."

"I, uh, well, I can't..."

"You're leaving me, aren't you?"

"Oh, stop with the big eyes, farmboy. Of course I'm not. It's nothing like that, you silly man. It's just that I... well, I've got a bun in the oven."

"!!!!!"

"Clark, for heaven's sake, put me down and stop spinning me around. That is such a cliche."

"What's wrong with cliches?"

"Well, for one thing, I have morning sickness, and I'm about to puke all over your shoulders."

"Okay. Putting you down now and backing far, far away..."

"Thank you. Look, Clark, I'm happy about this, but..."

"But??! What's not to be happy about?"

"Well, I'm human, and the baby is half Kryptonian. What if it's, you know, superstrong?"

"Um. Well. I got stronger as I got older. When my parents found me, I wasn't all that strong..."

"Didn't Martha tell me you flipped over their truck?"

"Well, yeah, but you know, it was just a pickup. I couldn't have flipped over a tractor trailer or anything..."

"How reassuring. Except not so much. The thing is, Clark, I'm just a normal human, and my body is... fragile. Suppose the Bun of Steel kicks me too hard?"

"I don't think it'll be extra-strong till it's born, Chloe. No direct exposure to sunlight."

"Hmmm. You could be right. But what if you're not?"

"I have to be right, Chlo. Because as much as I want to have a baby with you, I can't bear the thought of losing you, so you have got to come through this okay. Anyway, I get my strength from sunlight, so the baby should, too."

"It's not just strength. What if the baby develops heat vision and uses it on me?"

"I didn't get heat vision till I was fifteen..."

"Still. Just imagine how painful that would be. Or superbreath..."

"Which I didn't develop till I was an adult. Don't borrow trouble, Chloe. Our bun in the oven will probably be just like everyone else's, with no special abilities at first."

"I hope you're right."

"So do I, sweetheart. So do I."

*****

"Clark? I think I'm in labor."

"Oh, my God. I'm coming... uh, Chloe? Where are you?"

"Look up."

"Um... when did you learn to float, Chlo?"

"It's not me. I guess it's the Bun of Steel."

"So our baby didn't develop superstrength or heat vision or any of that stuff, but it's already floating?"

"And taking me along for the ride, apparently. Good thing we were inside the house. Otherwise I might just have floated off into the sky like a balloon and never been seen again."

"Maybe we should start calling it the Bun of Helium. When did this start?"

"With the first contraction. I guess the baby doesn't like the squeezing."

"Okay. Let's get to the hospital."

"Clark... I can't float into the maternity ward."

"True. Give me your hand and I'll hold you down."

*****

"Look at her beautiful little toes."

"They're cute, all right. But she's not floating any more."

"Good thing, too. If she was floating all the time, I'd be worried about losing her. Unlike you, I can't fly."

"It must have been a labor thing."

"Well, if she did it once, she'll probably do it again, sooner or later. We'll probably have to deal with all sorts of unusual abilities manifesting themselves eventually. But I'm glad the only ability we had to deal with during pregnancy was floating, and not superstrength or heat vision."

"Me too, sweetheart. I'm glad you and the baby both came through it all right."

"You know, we can't keep calling her the baby, Clark."

"True. So what are we calling her?"

"I don't know. We've been referring to her as the Bun of Steel for so long, I guess I forgot she'd have to have a real name."

"We could name her after you. Call her Chloe."

"I'm not sure the world can take two of me, Clark."

"Good point."

"What about calling her Martha, after your mom?"

"Mom would like that. But won't that get confusing?"

"Nah. Because she'll have a nickname."

"Marty?"

"Heck, no. We'll call her... Bunny."

-The End-

Read the sequel here.