Martha smiled and then they both knew. Martha had known it all along.

"This whole night was a setup, wasn't it, Mrs. Kent?" Lois asked. She couldn't hide the awe in her voice at just how clever the lady in front of them was.

The twinkle in Mrs. Kent's eyes answered that one. "Ernest and Candy helped. Only they're names aren't really Ernest and Candy."

"You mean they're not real?" Clark asked, flabbergasted.

"Of course they're real, dear, but they're actors from the Granville Playhouse."

Ernest and Candy demeanor had changed completely. Candy seemed much more subdued and nice. Ernest seemed much more lively with a good sense of humor.

"We thought it would be such fun that we couldn't say no," said 'Candy'.

"And we got paid for it and the money doesn't have to be taxed," 'Ernest' said jokingly.

They reintroduced themselves. Candy was an Amy and Ernest was a Cole. The false names had provided an extra touch to their characters. They politely excused themselves and went back downstairs. They appeared to be a couple. Lois was even more impressed. Not only had Martha gotten the both of them their perfect anti-date, boredom was something she couldn't stand and for Clark it was promiscuity, but to be extra cautious she had made sure the actors would have no interest in them and decide not to act after all. She was clever beyond words.

"I'd say we have a lot to talk about, wouldn't you?" Martha asked, closing the door behind Ernest/Cole and Candy/Amy.

They all gathered around the table for what they knew was going to be a long talk.

"First of all," Martha began, "I just want you to know how happy I am for you two. I couldn't be happier and I think you'll find you're the perfect complements to each other's personality, but I think you already know that. I can also see that you're both deeply in love. I just wish you would have told me without having to coerce you into it."

Both Clark and Lois smiled at her acceptance, reddened from not having told her sooner, and mumbled an apology.

Lois got up the courage to ask, "When did you find out?"

"Honestly?" Martha said. "I think I first suspected there was something going on when I was taking towels to the bathroom and found you in there together."

They both looked confused. She was referring to the first time she had ever really seen them together.

"You mean you didn't believe me?" Clark asked. "I promise you, Mom, they were separate showers. We didn't like each other like that back then. Really."

"I know that, but I also know that you wouldn't have been so eager to hide that she was in there if you utterly despised her and that Lois wouldn't have been so eager to embarrass you and get you into trouble. Some people may have been fooled into thinking it was a sister/brother kind of thing at first, but I saw two people who knew just how to hit the other's buttons and enjoy it. Fighting is a good way to hide what you're really feeling, especially to other people. I think you've tested that theory out a lot lately. People that don't like each other, don't spend time together, they avoid each other. But if you're talking about when you officially became a couple, I think I knew it when Clark made a point to emphasize you were sleeping in separate places."

"Great going, Smallville," Lois said, hitting him, jokingly.

"I guess we better be heading back downstairs, Mom, before they send out a search party. You are the host after all."

"Nice try, son. I want to talk about you and Lois living together."

"Is this a mother-son moment?" Lois asked.

"No," Martha responded. "It's a mother-son-daughter moment. I care about you both. That's why I don't want to see you doing something you might regret later. It's going to be hard to hear, but I think you have to hear it, and please know the choice is really up to you. I can't make you do anything. You're adults. I just want to make sure you have all the facts before you choose."

Clark shifted his eyes downward knowing exactly where this conversation was heading and Lois took a deep breath to prepare herself for it.

"Living together is a big step. It takes just as much commitment as marriage in a lot of ways. You're doing everything, but saving yourself the cost of a wedding and a possible divorce."

"We do plan on getting married someday," Clark assured her.

"We do?" Lois asked, surprised.

Clark looked at her full of concern, "Don't we?"

"Maybe, but I'm not sure how I feel about the whole idea of marriage. It does take commitment, ideally a lifetime of it and I can only concentrate one day at a time. I know today I love you and you love me. I want that to last, but I don't know what tomorrow holds, Clark. I'm still focused on building a career, marriage can take away from that."

"I know you're both excited about being together. I'm excited too, but you seem to be rushing things. How long have you been an official couple?" Martha asked, breaking the awkward tension that had settled.

"A few days," Clark said, starting to understand where his mom might be coming from.

"If you live together and I know you don't want to hear this from me, but the potential is there to have children. You don't know how well protection is going to work in your unique set of circumstances. If you decided to live together in abstinence, the temptation would be there daily and when you've truly found the one, the temptation shoots way up there. Much harder than it would have been with your previous experiences. I don't think I would be mistaken in saying that you aren't ready for children, would I?"

They shook their heads in perfect agreement on this one.

"Lois, dear, you've said your relationships don't last very long. Clark, honey, yours lasted too long. Maybe there's a happy medium in there somewhere. Take it slow, but not too slow."

Lois looked at Clark with a small smile. "I think it would be kind of fun if we did things the old-fashioned way. I haven't had much of a chance to live on my own before and neither have you. If we move to Metropolis like Tess suggested, we'd get more chances for better stories. It'd also be nice to visit each other's apartments and go out on dates after work. Instead of going straight to living together."

Clark agreed, "and it would only serve to make our marriage all the more special if that's even possible. If and when that happens," he added for Lois' sake. He looked to his mom and smiled, "You win."

She smiled back. "I'm proud of you both. I think you made the right decision. I have a little surprise for you."

"Not another surprise," Clark said, worried.

Lois grimaced. "Our last surprise wasn't so great," she said, talking about their dates.

"You'll like this one, I promise, " she said reassuringly. "I made a few phone calls and I managed to find someone who made such a tempting offer to Tess that she sold the Daily Planet."

"Wow, that is great, Mrs. Kent," Lois said stunned, but happy.

"Yes, it is and I made sure he would put in an editor with a real background in the newspaper business, Perry White."

"That's a wonderful surprise, Mom."

"Consider it a gift to my new favorite couple. Now we really had better get back downstairs."

Clark had one more question for his mother. He asked partly teasing, but mostly serious, "Are you sure that you didn't just spy and overhear the whole thing about us and the powers?"

Martha laughed and put an arm around each of them as they headed for the door, "Honey, I don't need to spy. I'm a mother."

The End