9. Chapter 9(2)
“Yes, you see I have, what I believe you guys here call a crush on her,” he explains casually and Lena just blinks at him for a moment before he clarifies further. “I have feelings. Of a romantic nature.”
“I know what crush means,” Lena says slowly.
“Oh good,” he replies and his smile widens. “I thought maybe you could put in a good word for me or help me figure out how to tell her.”
“I don’t think I’m the right person to ask,” Lena says, and she glances again to the table where Kara is now laughing at Winn. It’s an attractive look on her and Lena can’t help but smile at the sight despite her current conversation.
Mon-El must notice her gaze because he follows it and smiles himself. “Yeah, she’s like ridiculously pretty, right?”
Lena sours a bit, frowns. “Objectively true,” she deadpans and looks to where the bartender is still making their drinks. Next time she goes up to the bar with Mon-El she needs to remember to order something easy. Like a bottled beer instead of anything that involves pouring something.
“I know Alex said she’s chosen a mate, but I don’t get it. I haven’t seen her actually with anyone.”
Lena fights the urge to scrub her palm down her face in exasperation. “Maybe you should just ask Kara,” she says with a sigh.
“Since you’re her best friend I was thinking you might have some insight,” he replies with what she’s sure is meant to be an engaging smile. “A mate isn’t exactly an insurmountable obstacle anyway, but it’s always good to know what I’m up against.”
Lena bristles just a little at that, turns a confused expression his way. “Not an insurmountable obstacle?”
“We’re not on Krypton,” he says leaning closer to whisper it as if it’s a secret. They’re in a damn alien bar. “Or Daxam. And according to Winn, the concept of mating is like, pretty old fashioned here. People don’t really like to be bound by it.”
“I’m not sure Winn is your best source for advice on this subject,” Lena says wryly if only to counter the line of assumptions Mon-El continues to make about Kara’s love life.
“Well, that’s why I’m coming to you. Do you know who her mate is?” He asks with an earnest tone that Lena almost feels bad for. “I’ve seen her with that bracelet lately, but no sign of an actual mate to go along with it.”
Lena stills, processes the words. “What do you mean bracelet?”
“She’s wearing a bracelet,” Mon-El says with a confused twist to his smile like Lena should understand what that means.
The only bracelet Lena’s seen Kara wear is the one Lena herself gave her years ago and that’s been a relatively recent development as far as Lena is aware. “What does that have to do with anything?”
Mon-El shrugs. “I thought maybe it was a mating bracelet.”
Before she can inquire further, the bartender steps up to them and puts the first two drinks down between them.
“Anyway,” he says when they’re alone again. “Any advice? I hear flowers are a thing here. Should I get her flowers?”
Lena feels torn for a moment.
She could tell Mon-El the truth. That he’s setting himself up for failure, that Lena would bet her family’s fortune on Kara rejecting him and that she’s fairly confident that she’s part of the reason Kara wouldn’t be receptive to his feelings.
She feels a certain claim on Kara. It’d be foolish to think otherwise after all they’ve been through. As she thinks on it, the last few weeks have felt suspiciously like they’re dating again - the only thing missing is Lena explicitly agreeing they are. Kara made it clear that it was Lena’s decision to get back together and she feels like every interaction they’ve had recently has merely inched her closer and closer to that point.
But they’re not dating. Not in the official sense. And Kara is her own person and if a cute boy from Daxam wants to hit on her, Lena isn’t going to turn him down on Kara’s behalf.
“I would just tell her,” Lena says after a moment. “Put yourself out there and see what happens.”
“Just tell her?” He asks incredulously and the bartender comes back with the rest of her drinks.
Arching a brow and lifting her chin a little she just smiles, the kind of smile she likes to shoot at unsuspecting old white male executives that consistently underestimate her. “That’s right. All you can do tell her how you feel and see what she says. There’s nothing complicated about it.”
He still looks entirely skeptical, but she doesn’t stick around to explain. Grabbing as many drinks as her hands can hold she turns away from him and walks back to their table.
Kara is smiling at her as she approaches and Lena tries to ignore the way her eyes keep getting drawn to the piece of metal wrapped around Kara’s wrist.
It’s not a mating bracelet, obviously, because Lena had never intended it to be as such, but she feels something nag at the back of her brain. How had Kara never mentioned the intricacies of Kryptonian mating? They’d had millions of conversations about Kara’s homeworld and its culture yet somehow it had never come up.
It’s a struggle not to start to connect the dots in her head. She’s fairly positive she’s not prepared for the big picture of it.
“You okay?” Kara asks when Lena slides on a stool next to where Kara’s standing and hands her a drink.
“Yeah,” Lena says even as her brain feels all over the place. “So when do we do this Secret Santa stuff?”
“Now,” Winn answers from across the table and he points to a small bowl in the middle filled with tiny pieces of paper.
They pass the bowl around to pick names out of it and Lena feels nervous at the idea of having to buy a decent gift for anyone at the table that isn’t Kara or maybe Alex. James would be difficult, Mon-El would be near impossible, but her nerves settle a bit when it’s her turn and she pulls a piece of paper out with a crooked Winn scratched over the surface.
Winn is someone she’s pretty sure she can handle, and about six different ideas pop into her head immediately.
Kara leans over with a clear intent to spy on her paper and Lena pulls away so abruptly she bumps into James, who just laughs at them.
Eyes narrowed and lips thin, Kara eyes the spot on Lena’s chest that Lena’s pressed her paper against. “I have x-ray vision, you know,” she comments, touching the rim of her glasses with the tip of her finger.
Lena is suddenly very aware of where exactly she has her slip of paper pressed and she arches an eyebrow at her ex-girlfriend. “You wouldn’t dare.”
Kara fights a playful smile and goes to say something before a peanut hits the side of her head and they both look over to find Alex glaring at them. “Can you keep the gross to the privacy of your own homes?” Alex asks dryly and Lena clears her throat a little, folds the piece of paper and slips it into her purse where it hangs on her chair.
It’s exactly the way Alex used to talk to them when they were dating and when Lena glances at Kara she thinks, not for the first time, that there really isn’t a choice to be made. No matter how hard they try, they always end up like this, like a couple even when they’re not.
It’s only made worse when Kara continues to stand next to where Lena is sitting, her hand brushing over the small of Lena’s back at random times. Lena doesn’t notice it for long moments until she spots Alex eyeing them with exasperation and Winn looking at them both with a grin he is clearly trying unsuccessfully to suppress.
--
They don’t meet up to exchange their gifts. Apparently the object of the game is to leave them in random places to be found by the recipient. Lena’s a little grateful she doesn’t have to have an audience for both the giving and receiving.
Her gift shows up one afternoon as she’s coming back from a lunch meeting. It’s a brown paper package tied with string and leaning up against her desk.
“From your Secret Santa,” Jess says with a certain amount of mirth in your voice. “I’m under strict orders not to disclose their identity, but since you’re my boss you obviously outrank this person. I had it scanned by security. It’s safe.”
Lena laughs a little, picks up the rectangular looking package. Thin, but relatively large. “It’s no problem. Thank you, Jess.”
“Anytime, Miss Luthor.”
She sits in her desk chair and rips open the gift, wondering who it’s from. It’s been a long time since she’s received a Christmas gift, or a present at all, and even though she expected this one, it still warms a soft spot in her chest.
As soon as the brown wrapping is torn away it becomes clear who got her for Secret Santa.
The picture is from the gala L Corp held for the children’s hospital months ago. She and Kara are standing facing each other, or rather she and Supergirl are. The photo seems to capture nothing and everything all at once.
To anyone else it might just look like two people smiling at each other, but Lena can see it between them. Kara’s got her hands on her hips, but there’s a happy crinkle around her eyes and Lena’s body is leaned in towards Kara as they talk. They look together even though they’re standing feet apart.
James. He’s the only one capable of taking such a picture in the group and probably the only one that could see what Lena can see.
She hits a button on her phone that connects her to Jess. “Can you get me James Olsen over at CatCo on the line please?”
It’s only a few minutes later that the call is clicking through and a bright sounding, “Good afternoon, Lena,” is coming down the line.
“It’s a beautiful picture, James,” she says warmly and he laughs.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he says, but there’s a clear amount of tease in his voice. It’s so different than the cautious distrust he’s had for her in the past, or the wary acceptance he’s seemed to have of her presence. “But I’ll pass along the note to Santa.”
Lena laughs. “I just wanted to thank you. You have quite the eye.”
“The camera did all the work,” he replies.
“I doubt that’s true.”
“I appreciate the compliment, but it helps when you have a great subject.”
“You’re too kind.”
There’s silence for a bit before he answers. “I know I may not have been the warmest to you in the past, but I want you to know that it’s only because I care about Kara.”
Lena exhales through a smile. “I know that and it’s understandable I assure you. I’ve had much colder receptions. You’ve been fine.”
James chuckles. “Kara might disagree with you.”
With an affectionate roll of her eyes, Lena laughs. “She often does.”
“I’m glad you like the picture.”
“I do,” Lena says genuinely. “Thank you again.”
“Merry Christmas, Lena.”
“Merry Christmas, James.”
--
It’s not hard to acquire a gift for Winn and most of what she needs for it is stored in L Corp. It only takes her an extra few hours during the work week to finish it.
She has absolutely no idea where Winn lives and abandons subterfuge for texting him to come to her office instead.
It’s more than worth it, because she gets to see his face when he sees his gift and Lena feels about ten stories high just at the sight of it.
“How did you know?” Winn asks incredulously, stomping forward towards his gift with childlike excitement in his face.
“Kara mentioned that you were a fan of the sport,” Lena says casually, leaning up against her desk and watching him eye the small robot on the floor. “I used to dabble in it in college.”
Winn turns to her with a look of pure surprise. “Dabble in it?”
She shrugs. “It was a hobby.” With a gentle clearing of her throat, she makes a decision. “Lex and I used to build them together actually. When we were children.”
There’s strangely nothing but sympathy in Winn’s expression and he doesn’t even comment on what she’s said. Instead he rubs his hands together excitedly and picks up the small remote control that’s sitting on top of the robot. “This is awesome. I can’t wait to test it out.”
She chews a bit at her lower lip, glances towards her office door. “There might be another one downstairs in an empty storage unit.”
Winn’s eyes widen and a slow smile crawls over his face. “You’re so my new best friend,” he breathes. “Don’t tell Kara.”
She just laughs. “Merry Christmas, Winn.”
When he walks over to hug her, it doesn’t feel forced and she doesn’t hesitate to return the gesture. “Merry Christmas, Lena,” he whispers over her shoulder.
--
Christmas ends up being not entirely unlike Thanksgiving except that it’s hosted at Alex’s apartment.
Even though this time Lena doesn’t hesitate before walking up to the door that’s just barely muffling the laughter and conversation inside, Kara swings it open before she even gets two feet away. There’s a wide easy grin on Kara’s face and she’s dressed in the most ridiculous ugly Christmas sweater Lena has ever seen with what must be reindeer antlers propped up on her head, a little askew.
“Hey,” is all Kara says before rushing towards her to wrap her up in a tight hug. Lena laughs and returns it with a swift kiss to Kara’s cheek that she doesn’t even think about before doing.
“I’m so happy you’re here,” Kara says when they pull apart and Lena breathes in against the warm blanket of affection that covers her suddenly. There’s a delicious smell wafting out of Alex’s apartment, the door only slightly ajar, and she can hear the familiar voices of Alex and Winn arguing over something.
“I am too,” she replies with a smile she couldn’t smother if she tried. She reaches up to tug at Kara’s fake antlers until they sit straighter on her head. “Merry Christmas.”
A faint blush dusts Kara’s cheeks, but she smiles back at Lena, reaches out to tangle their fingers together. “Merry Christmas.”
When she walks into the apartment, it’s an overwhelming feeling to be greeted like she’s one of the family.
Winn ambles over immediately to hug her and starts talking animatedly about a modification he’s been considering for his battle bot. Mon-El waves excitedly. James smiles at her genuinely and kisses her on the cheek in greeting. He introduces her to Lucy Lane who looks unsurprised to see her there.
“So nice to finally meet you,” Lucy says with a bright smile. “I feel like I’ve heard a million stories between James and Alex and Kara.”
Lena laughs politely. “Nice to meet you as well. I always heard that Lois Lane had a much cooler younger sister.”
A crooked smile crosses Lucy’s face in reaction and she sends an impressed look at James. “I told you I’d like her.”
Even Alex doesn’t so much as blink before greeting Lena with a quick hug and a swift instruction to grab the damn pot holder will you I think the casserole is burning. Lena does as instructed and pulls the object out of the oven just as Eliza comes over to say hello and shoots Alex a disdainful look.
“Don’t make the guests do that, Alex,” Eliza says after hugging Lena tightly.
“She’s not a guest,” Alex waves off, dipping a spoon in a dish of mashed potatoes and testing a bite. “She’s Lena.”
It makes Eliza laugh, and when Lena catches Kara’s eye they smile warmly at each other.
Eliza pours Lena a glass of wine and with an apology for her daughter’s manners, pushes Lena into the living room to socialize while they finish cooking.
James and Winn are in a heated argument about what to put on the television, which Mon-El is observing with curiosity. Lena is left to talk to Lucy Lane, and she smiles at the other girl before coming to sit next to her on the couch.
It’s a pleasant conversation. They have a surprisingly large amount of things in common, from growing up in the shadows of overachieving siblings to overbearing parents to moving out of Metropolis.
Not for the first time, Lena finds herself talking about her personal life with someone other than Kara and not feeling out of sorts. Lucy doesn’t even flinch at the mention of her brother and Lena’s left wondering why exactly that would be.
It should be expected by this point, but it still blindsides her when Lucy casually asks, “So how long have you and Kara been together? I have to admit last time I was in town I thought that she and James might…” Lucy trails off with a quick glance to where James is standing with Winn towering over Alex’s DVD collection.
Lena laughs this time because she no longer knows how to react any other way. “We’re not together, actually,” Lena says and she shrugs at Lucy’s surprised expression.
“I’m sorry,” Lucy says, with wide eyes. “I just assumed from the way everyone talked about you two. I guess I shouldn’t have.”
Lena shakes her head, swirls her wine around little. “You’re not the first. Frankly, I doubt you’ll be the last.”
Lucy’s gaze goes critical then, a little narrowing of her eyes and she glances over Lena’s shoulder a few times before saying, “Are you sure you’re not together?”
Brow furrowing, Lena tilts her head. “I imagine that’d be something I’d be aware of.”
Lucy’s lips twist a little in amusement and she looks over Lena’s shoulder again. “You might want to tell Kara that because the way she looks at you reminds me a little too much of the way she used to look at James last year when I was sure they were in love with each other.”
Lena twists around to follow Lucy’s gaze and finds Kara smiling at them before turning away so swiftly she bumps into Alex, who lets out an indignant noise and swats at her sister with a spatula that immediately bends on Kara’s arm. When she turns back to Lucy, the other girl is smiling over the rim of her glass.
“Kara and I have a history,” Lena confesses in a lower tone and she wonders why it’s so easy to talk about this with a virtual stranger when it’s been something she’s all but avoiding bringing up around anyone else.
“That much is pretty obvious to anyone,” Lucy says dryly. “I’ve been in a room with you less than a half hour and I can tell.”
“Maybe you merely have heightened observational powers.”
“Flattery will get you everywhere,” Lucy says with a smirk and before Lena can answer James is sliding into a spot on the couch next to Lucy, his arm winding above her shoulders. “Did you two decide on a movie?” Lucy asks him, leaning into his body a little.
“Winn thinks Die Hard is a Christmas movie,” James says with a little laugh and Lucy looks at him plainly.
“It is,” Lucy replies and Winn brightens from his spot on an armchair opposite them.
“See!” He says pointing at Lucy but looking at James, who just rolls his eyes.
Lucy smiles at her as James and Winn continue what sounds like an old argument and Lena half listens as she sips her wine and sinks further into the couch cushions.
The rest of the evening is spent eating far too much food than should be humanly possible and even Kara looks somewhat stuffed by the time they’re done.
When it’s all finished James and Winn kick everyone out of the kitchen with an insistence that they do the clean up. Despite Alex’s many protests that they’re not allowed to mess up her kitchen, she finally acquiesces and grabs a bottle of wine to bring into the living room.
They spend entirely too long debating what game they should play. In the end they decide on Monopoly and Kara puts on It’s a Wonderful Life on mute in the background.
It reminds her of long Christmas nights when her father was still alive and the family would gather in the oversized den in Luthor Manor. Her parents would sip on brandy alexanders and she and Lex would sit on the floor and fall asleep to whatever movie was playing late that night.
The feeling isn’t that different from now except there’s a touch more laughter and teasing and Alex doesn’t even glare at her when Lena wins the game. Instead she just rolls her eyes in exasperation and lets out a tired, “Of course.”
--
By the time they’re walking out of Alex’s apartment, Lena feels full of food and perhaps a glass too many of wine. She’s not drunk, but she’s not sober either and she can’t help but lean into Kara when they make it out onto the sidewalk. Kara immediately twists an arm around her waist and holds her upright with a solid embrace that Lena sighs against.
“Can I fly you home?” Kara asks lowly, voice close to Lena’s ear.
The wine is making her a touch sleepy and generally more agreeable and she just nods. “I have to give you your gift.”
“Me too,” Kara says and she gestures towards the large tote bag slung over her shoulder
They walk around Alex’s apartment building towards a side street that’s empty and quiet. Kara glances around furtively for a second before pulling Lena up into her arms and jumping up into the air.
The flight is quick and Lena spends it with her face buried in the crook of Kara’s neck fighting the urge to fall asleep there.
“Make yourself comfortable,” Lena says when they walk into her apartment. She tosses her coat and purse onto a stool in her kitchen as she passes by and waltzes back to her bedroom where Kara’s gift is stored. She changes quickly into something more casual than the black dress she had been wearing before and when she comes back out, Kara is standing in the kitchen with a red and white wrapped package is in front of her.
Lena sets her own gift on the table next to it and smiles.
“You first,” Kara says, pushing the gift across the table.
Lena takes her time pulling the wrapping paper off in precise motions that she knows irritates Kara, if the way she huffs a little is any indication. It only makes Lena move a little slower and fight a smile.
Inside the box is a folded up navy sweatshirt and when she pulls it out it has S.T.A.R. Labs printed across the front. Lena laughs.
“I wanted to give you a reminder of our epic adventure to Earth-1,” Kara says proudly. “Plus, I know you’re super lacking in the sweatshirt department these days so…”
“Thank you,” Lena says, with a grin that Kara returns.
“There’s more,” Kara adds, pointing to the box where there are indeed two more items.
The first is a framed picture that Lena lets out a little surprised laugh when she sees them. The first is a picture of Felicity, Cisco, Caitlin and herself bent over a computer monitor and discussing something. Cisco is gesturing towards the computer and Felicity is shooting an exasperated look in Lena’s direction while Caitlin squints at whatever is on the monitor. “Who took this?” Lena asks with a quizzical look for Kara.
“Iris,” Kara answers. “She was cataloging some of our work for a story of hers and she passed along a few pictures. I know you don’t really keep pictures around anymore, but I thought it’d be kind of fun to have.”
Lena can’t stop staring at her own image. The casual smile she’s giving Felicity and how easily she fits in the group - she doesn’t look out of place at all. She looks like a natural extension of the team. She looks like she belongs. The memory of what it felt like on Earth-1 beats across her skin for a heavy moment. “It’s great,” she says.
The last item in the box holds a long square metal plate that Lena looks at quizzically for a moment before Kara reaches out to tap a hidden button on one of its sides. Suddenly a hologram bursts forth and Lena nearly drops the device in reaction.
“What…” Lena says softly as she observes what she realizes must be game pieces spread out across the board. If she didn’t know better-
“Imperiex chess,” Kara tells her and Lena’s eyes go a little wide at the mention of a game Kara had only told her about in passing many years ago. “I had Winn help me create something similar from the files in the Fortress of Solitude.”
“I don’t know how to play,” is all Lena can think to say and she eyes the different pieces, the way the game board spreads out across the kitchen island. It doesn’t look too far off from the chess she’s used to, but she can spot a few differences - a different arrangement of tiles, more pieces.
“I know,” Kara says and she presses the button again to shut down the game. It pulls Lena’s gaze back to Kara’s. “I thought I could teach you.”
It’s just an offer to learn a new game, but Lena feels it beat heavily against her chest. “Really?”
“If you want,” Kara says softly and Lena smiles, imagines long nights spent with Kara over a table trying to learn a game Kara had once classified as chess on steroids.
“You’re my favorite,” Lena replies equally as soft and a smile stretches so widely across Kara’s face that Lena feels her own mouth mimicking it in reaction.
“Still?” Kara asks, but there’s a teasing bent to her lips.
Lena smiles and the truth drops out of her before she can keep it inside. “Always.”
They stare at each other for a long charged moment, matching smiles stuck on their faces before Lena takes a deep breath and pulls a small box over.
“Okay, your turn,” Lena says handing the present over to Kara’s eagerly awaiting hands.
Kara tears into her gift with none of the precision Lena had. The gift wrapping flies off the small box and when she pulls out what’s inside, a small silver circular device, she stares at it with clear confusion on her face.
Lena takes it from her hands with a small smile. “I’ll show you how it works,” Lena says.
“What is it?” Kara asks, tracking Lena’s movements.
“I’m going to show you,” Lena laughs and she steps towards a light switch. With a flick of her finger they’re shrouded in darkness and Lena sets the device on the kitchen island, presses the button.
Seconds later the small device hums to life and a massive hologram springs forth, shrouding them both in a projection of a star chart. It’s three dimensional and massive, extending far outward - there’s a cluster of stars situated right in front of Kara’s face, and she reaches out to touch them. Lena watches as Kara’s eyes widen when an informational display pops up, explaining the name of one of the stars.
It takes a few seconds of Kara’s eyes wandering through the projection before her eyes land on a large red star. She lets out a soft exhale and a breathy, “Lena,” as she advances on it. Lena comes to meet her in the space.
“It’s like a star chart,” Lena explains and Kara laughs a little, looking around.
“This is a little more than a star chart,” Kara says and even in the dark Lena can see Kara’s growing smile. “This is - I mean this is-” Kara walks through the image for a moment. “This is Rao, right, and here’s Krypton, and Daxam...”
Lena nods slowly. “It’s programmed for both the Andromeda and Milky Way galaxies, but the area around Krypton is the default. So...watch this.”
Lena reaches out to grab ahold of the much smaller bright speck of Krypton, next to Rao, and when she pulls her hands apart, Krypton expands right in front of them, coming to the size of a beach ball. It’s surface is not extremely detailed, but Kara reaches out to rush her hand over it anyway, spinning it in the air as a factbook pops up in front of her.
Kara steps closer to Lena, close enough that they can see each other’s faces more clearly and there bodies are brushing against each other. “How did you even do this?”
“It was an idea I had in college,” Lena admits and it comes out easier than she thought it would. “You used to chart the surrounding stars, remember?”
“Years ago,” Kara says with a bewildered expression.
Lena shrugs. “I still have some of the charts, and Winn helped me fill in the rest with some of the DEO resources. It wasn’t that hard to build, data-wise. The hologram technology was a lot harder to work with, really.”
“You’re a genius,” Kara says, and she looks away from Krypton to stare at Lena with such open admiration and love that Lena nearly kisses her right then and there. “I love it.”
“It can also project the night sky. Ones for Krytpon too, if you just,” Lena says, trekking back to the machine at the center of the room. Kara’s face drops into shock when she flicks a switch and an unfamiliar night sky appears on her ceiling.
“You used to talk about how much you missed the night sky back home and I thought maybe you’d like-”
“I love it,” Kara interrupts, looking upwards and reaching behind her blindly to grip Lena and wrap her up in a tight hug. “I love it so much. Thank you so much.”
“Merry Christmas, Kara,” Lena murmurs, her face buried in the soft skin of Kara’s neck.
Kara doesn’t respond, just presses a warm kiss to the side of Lena’s head and hugs her a little tighter.
--
The office is blissfully empty during the week after Christmas right before the New Year. Most of the employees have the time off and even Lena’s team of assistants were given paid leave for the holiday as a bonus for all the insanity the past few months have been.
Lena takes the opportunity to get as much work done as she can and returns to her habit of spending late nights in the R&D lab wading through projects.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise to see Lana Lang one of those nights, but she still jumps a little when a steaming cup of coffee is set next to her tablet at her workstation.
“It’s the holidays, you know,” Lana teases, sliding into a stool opposite Lena and bringing her own mug of coffee up to her lips.
Lena shoots her a dry look, but picks up the offered drink with a smile. “What are you doing here?”
Lana shrugs, leans her elbows on the table and smiles. “It was either come in and get ahead on some work or sit at home with my two cats and drink a bottle of wine by myself. Easy choice.”
Lena laughs, sets her stylus down and rolls her head a bit around her neck to ease the ache that’s settled there. “Well, I am grateful for the coffee as always.”
“What are you working on?” Lana asks, peering a little at Lena’s screen.
“Nothing really,” Lena answers, pushing some of her notes away from her with a noisy exhale. She’d been trying to solve a problem with one of their robotics projects, but her brain can’t stop replaying the image of Kara’s face and it’s all she’s been able to concentrate on.
Lana observes her for a bit, her gaze narrowing subtly. “Are you okay?”
The question surprises Lena a bit, unused to anyone but maybe Kara asking after her wellbeing. She laughs on instinct. “Of course. Why do you ask?”
With a shrug of her shoulder and another careful sip of her coffee, Lana’s lips thin in consideration. “You’ve just seemed out of it. Haven’t been down here as much. Is it everything that’s going on with…” Lana gestures with one hand and it takes a second before Lena realizes what’s being implied. Stuff with her mother.
Startled to discover she hasn’t actually spent significant thought on her family drama for some time, Lena actually laughs. “No, it’s not that.”
“But it’s something.”
Lana has become somewhat of a friend since Lena moved to National City. A bond had been forged over long nights in the lab and easy collaboration over project after project. There’s a trust there that Lena didn’t create purposefully, but realizes is there nonetheless. It’s comforting to have a friend so separate from anything to do with Kara or her family. And that’s the only reason the truth comes dropping out of her before she can stop it.
“I’ve been going through some things with an ex of mine.”
Lana arches an eyebrow in clear surprise and sets her coffee mug down to give Lena her full attention. “Do you want to talk about it?”
Lena sighs. She doesn’t really want to talk about it, doesn’t feel like navigating that emotional minefield right now, but she thinks maybe saying some of what she’s feeling out loud will help her sort through it.
“We dated in college,” she tells Lana. “And now we’re back in each other’s lives and…”
“You want to get back together?” Lana ventures and Lena shrugs, lips thinning.
“It’s more complicated than that.”
“What’s complicated?”
Lena chews at her bottom lip a moment, slides her palms around the hot mug and takes strength from the heat seeping into her palms. “I broke up with her, “ she says simply after a moment. “And when I’m around her sometimes I forget why.”
Lana blinks. “Well if you broke up I’m sure you had good reasons.”
“I’m not so sure anymore,” Lena confesses, softer than before. “They made sense when we were in college. I was graduating early and I had so much responsibility ahead of me and now we’re different people, but we still fit together the same way we used to.”
It feels good to say this to someone else, to put it out there in the universe instead of keeping it locked up inside.
“Then maybe you need to stop thinking with your heart for a second and use your head,” Lana offers and it surprises Lena. It’s exactly the opposite of the kind of advice she’d expect from someone in this context and her confusion must show on her face because Lana laughs.
“We’re scientists, Lena,” Lana says simply, standing up and taking her mug with her. “Maybe you just need to go through it logically. Think of each reason and decide if they still matter now or not. If they do, then stay broken up. If they don’t, stop torturing yourself over it.”
It’s a wonder why Lena hadn’t thought to really do that before. She’s been so caught up in the onslaught of emotion being around Kara again had brought about that she’d failed to step back and look at the situation like a scientist, questioning and logical.
“It’s not a bad idea,” she muses.
Lana rounds the workstation, sets a warm companionable hand on Lena’s shoulder. “Don’t be the one who stands in the way of your own happiness,” she says with a sad twist to her smile. “Trust me.”
Lana walks away then, retreats to her office and Lena is left to stare at the steam still curling up from her coffee while she contemplates what Lana’s said.
--
She makes a list.
There are a few items on it detailing the reasons her younger college self had for breaking up with Kara all those years ago. They’re not all the reasons she had, but they cover the big stuff and Lena spends an evening at home going through each one with a glass of wine in her hand.
They all get crossed out in some manner.
They no longer live in different parts of the country. Not that that was ever an insurmountable obstacle in the first place all things considered.
Her mother isn’t a governing influence in her life anymore. In fact, Lena is the only member of her family not in jail or heading there. For all intents and purposes, she’s the head of the Luthor family these days.
Their careers are much more settled than they were in college. Lena may still have workaholic tendencies, but they’re no longer fueled as much by a driving need to prove herself to her mother or to climb a corporate mountain she’s already conquered.
Their lives are admittedly much more dangerous than they were in college, but if the past few months have taught Lena anything, that’s something that isn’t going to change whether they’re together or not. With Lex in prison and her mother about to follow him, the danger Lena brings to the relationship has been significantly lessened at the very least.
None of her reasoning holds up as she walks through each line in the list.
As a scientist, the conclusion is obvious.
Her heart tells her that she and Kara still have things to talk about, to work through, to figure out before they actually dive back into anything at all, but Lena no longer feels a pressing need to be the one keeping them apart anymore.
As she gets to the end of her list and finishes her glass of wine she realizes there’s nothing keeping her from taking the next step forward. Logically, she has no reason not to.
It’s a heartstopping kind of moment and she feels her chest squeeze as her heart catches up to her brain. She wonders if Kara can hear her right now, if across the noise of the city she can pick out the way Lena’s heart is beating, faster and heavier and with a purpose it didn’t have before.
--
L Corp rents out an old massive train station that’s now been converted into an event space and hosts a New Year’s party in place of the Luthor Family Fundraising Gala. The guest list remains the same, but the name changes from Luthor Family to L Corp and she sets up donation plans for a variety of charities instead of funneling the money into the family foundation as it’s always been done.
The company invites many of the usual suspects - though she eliminates some of the people more loyal to her mother or brother from the list. It’s a snap decision a few days beforehand to invite Kara and by extension the rest of the friends.
It’s on a whim more than anything, and while she expects Kara to say yes she doesn’t expect the enthusiastic response she gets from the rest of them.
Winn sends her a text with a selfie of him in oversized plastic glasses that say Happy New Year across the darkened lenses. A this is black tie appropriate right? accompanies the picture. She laughs before sending back a note that he can wear whatever he wants.
The party is a raging success and they manage to pack the event - they reach their projected fundraising goal less than two hours after the doors open.
With a glass of champagne and a practiced smile, Lena spends her time working the room, shaking hands and thanking guests for their attendance and generosity. It’s sometime around ten - or at least Lena thinks it is - that she spots Kara hovering near the appetizer table in a sleek black dress, hair piled on top her head.
She looks gorgeous even as she stuffs a potsticker into her mouth and grabs three more into a cocktail napkin.
Winn is next to her, but he’s facing away from the table and he’s the first to spot Lena, face brightening immediately as he waves. With a polite goodbye to the group of investors she’d been speaking to she makes her way over to where Winn and Kara are.
As soon as she’s close enough Winn moves in to greet her and Lena shouldn’t be surprised that he goes for a hug, but she is a little and Kara’s lips are pressed into a small smile at the sight.
“Happy New Year,” Lena says to them, and when Winn releases her, Kara steps forward with a quick kiss to Lena’s cheek that could easily be misconstrued as friendly, but it makes Lena’s throat go a little thick. “Thank you for coming.”
“Wouldn’t miss it,” Winn says. “James and Lucy are at the bar with Alex.”
With a quick glance that direction, Lena smiles to see the trio standing in line near one of the many bars around the room. “I’m glad you all could come.”
“I’m just here for the free food,” Kara jokes with an adorable scrunch of her nose that makes Lena laugh.
“I don’t doubt it,” she teases back and they smile at each other for a long enough moment that Winn has to clear his throat.
Jess approaches her then, subtly from the side and touches her briefly on the elbow, leaning close to whisper. “I’m sorry, Miss Luthor, but you wanted to be informed when Mr. Graves arrived.”
“Thank you, Jess,” Lena says with a tight smile and a glance towards the entrance where the man in question is indeed walking in. “I’ll be right over.”
Turning back to Kara and Winn she takes a deep breath and smiles regretfully at them both. “Sorry to cut and run, but this is work for me.”
“Totally,” Winn says with a shake of his head and a wave of his hand. “No worries.”
Kara looks at her with the kind of understanding she remembers from late nights in her dorm room after a particularly draining family event. It makes her want to reach out and grab Kara’s hand so Lena can have her by her side the rest of the night. She takes a sip of champagne to quench the desire and with a last smile walks away.
--
The problem with the highly attended, overly successful event that she’s hosting is that she doesn’t really get to enjoy herself. It’s only made slightly worse by the glimpses she gets of where Kara is standing with her friends, drinking cocktails and laughing at a high top on the side of the room.
After what feels like the millionth stale conversation riddled with pleasantries and disingenuous condolences about her mother, Lena needs a break and retreats to a back hallway where a bathroom takes residence. She spends a good moment checking her makeup and fiddling with her hair, taking deep breaths before she has to go out and face the party again.
For a bit, she runs through her New Year’s toast in her head and makes sure she remembers all the talking points before exiting the bathroom with her armor back at full strength.
Kara is waiting for her, propped up against the wall opposite with a bottle of champagne and two glasses. It startles her and she jumps back a little, hand to her chest.
“Hi,” Lena says when she’s caught her breath and her heart isn’t racing. She runs a palm down the front of her dress to ensure it’s straightened. Kara looks dangerously attractive right now and she’s looking at Lena with darker eyes than normal and a tiny smirk on her face.
“Hi,” Kara parrots. “I saw you sneak away. Are you okay?”
“Of course,” Lena says on reflex and Kara gives her a knowing smile that urges her to tell the truth. “These kinds of things always exhaust me,” she admits and after a beat adds, “Even without my mother."
Kara laughs a little. “Well,” she says, and she holds the items in her hand up. “Do you want to go hide away with me? It’s almost midnight.”
The idea is so appealing that her stomach tightens just thinking of it, of leaving the loud sound of the event space for something quiet. “I can’t leave my own party, Kara,” she says with a certain amount of regret.
“Yes you can,” Kara insists and she pushes the glasses into the hand holding the champagne bottle before reaching out to grab Lena’s hand. “It’s almost midnight. Everyone is focused on the countdown and who they’re going to kiss when it hits the new year. Winn met some girl from your IT department and has been flirting with her all night. It’s gross and I don’t want to be there for that anymore.”
“I’m supposed to make a toast,” Lena argues, but her brain kind of derails when she remembers there’s a kissing tradition associated with this holiday and Kara’s suggesting they be alone for the big moment.
“After midnight,” Kara says. “They won’t miss you for the next few minutes.”
Lena thinks to protest further, but Kara is already pulling her away, heading to a back stairwell like she has a plan. “Where are we going?”
“I know a place,” is all Kara offers and not long later they’re walking out a roof exit. Lena feels suddenly grateful the building they’re in doesn’t have too many floors. Kara often forgets that not everyone has her stamina nor her ability to walk up several floors in heels and not break a sweat.
The roof has a small patio section off to the side with tables and Kara leads them that way, setting the glasses down on the table before releasing Lena’s hand. The exhaustion from earlier starts to settle over Lena and she’s suddenly grateful for the relative silence of the roof space and the calm feeling she gets as she leans against the railing to overlook the city.
Kara comes up next to her, leans close enough that their arms brush. “Do you remember New Year’s Eve sophomore year?”
Lena laughs. “I remember you getting hit by fireworks trying to fly in Metropolis,” she says with the same kind of disapproval in her voice as she had years ago.
The smile that stretches on Kara’s face starts sheepish, but then it deepens into something more warm. “Worth it, though,” she says in a low tone that clenches in Lena’s gut.
The party can still be heard from inside the building, muffled but distinct enough that Lena can hear a countdown starting. A companionable silence stretches between them as they listen and watch a few stragglers on the street below jump around and yell out the numbers.
When the clock strikes midnight, Lena turns to face Kara with a smile. Lena opens her arms for a hug that Kara easily steps into and they hold each other for a long moment before letting go.
It feels safe. Warm.
“Happy New Year,” Lena says, still in Kara’s personal space, close enough that she can feel body heat against the chill air. Kara’s eyes dart to Lena’s lips so obviously that her whole being pulls forward on instinct.
“Happy New Year,” Kara repeats and then before anything else can be said, Lena moves to press a quick, almost friendly peck to Kara’s lips.
It’s a nothing kiss. Easily dismissed and moved on from - New Year’s Tradition and nothing else - but neither of them leave each other’s airspace for a long profound moment and something that’s been wavering between them shifts into place.
There’s intention in the moment and Lena feels it like a string tugging at her ribcage towards Kara. A decision she made ages ago flares up in her chest and starts to feel solid, tangible.
“I really want to kiss you again,” Kara confesses in a hush, the words dropping with a small puff of breath against Lena’s mouth.
She swallows, pokes her tongue out briefly to wet her suddenly dry lips. Pandora’s box, she thinks.
And then she decides to stop thinking. “Okay,” she murmurs and it isn’t like before. Kara doesn’t surge forward and neither does Lena. There’s no sense of urgency or desperation. No pent up emotion demanding to come bursting out.
It’s just soft and warm and wrapped in a field full of memories when Kara smiles and then presses back against Lena’s mouth. It feels right in a way nothing has since they’ve been back and it somehow feels better than the kiss in Lena’s office or the one on Earth-1.
Lena’s arms wrap around Kara’s neck and strong arms weave around Lena’s waist until she’s getting pulled up against Kara’s body like she has thousands of times.
Kissing Kara is always a full body experience and her heartbeat thumps loudly where it’s pressed against Kara’s chest. She feels lightheaded and free and she can’t stop smiling against Kara’s lips, laughing a little when Kara keeps grinning too.
She thinks to say I missed you, missed this, but it’s been said between them before and she’s not sure how to convey how differently she means it.
The opportunity to say anything is ruined anyway by a soft clearing of a throat from not too far away and they both jump, Kara setting Lena down immediately as they turn to see who’s interrupted them.
It’s Jess. Looking entirely sheepish and hesitant, but that’s when Lena remembers where she is and who she is and she steps away from Kara with an apologetic smile.
“It’s time for your toast, Miss Luthor. I’m sorry to interrupt.” Jess has a bit of a playful smile on her face when she nods at Kara. “Miss Danvers.”
“Yes of course, no need to apologize,” Lena says and she swallows thickly, adjusting her dress and sparing a thought to fix her makeup when they get back inside. She’s sure her lipstick is a mess. “I’ll be right down.”
With a nod and a smile Jess leaves them be and Lena turns a wry smile towards Kara.
“Hi,” Kara says with a laugh and she reaches out to grab Lena’s hand, swinging their arms loosely.
“Hi,” Lena repeats and she laughs too.
“Could have been worse,” Kara comments, tilting her head towards the roof exit Jess just used. “Could have been Alex.”
Laughing again and nodding sagely, Lena wags a finger at Kara. “Very true.”
“Come on,” Kara says, turning to head back inside. “I want to hear your toast.”
They make no mention of the kiss or all that it meant and Lena thinks maybe that’s because they don’t have to. Understanding passes so easily between them that words sometimes can’t quite measure up.
Except that’s how it’s been ever since Lena came to National City. Ever since they saw each other again for the first time, since they kissed in Lena’s office, on Earth-1. Since they started texting every single day and talking and integrating into each other’s lives again. They’ve been wavering in this unclassified area, circling around each other over and over and over again.
Kara had made it clear that it was Lena’s decision. That if she wants to stop this back and forth between them then she has to take the leap first.
They’re almost at the door that will lead back into the building and Lena feels nerves buzz across her skin as her mind makes a decision her heart had already solidified years ago.
“Kara,” she says softly Kara stops, turns to Lena expectantly. “Would you like to have dinner? With me?”
Silence stretches and distantly Lena can hear the sound of more fireworks across town, the celebratory screams of people on the street.
“What?”
“Dinner,” Lena repeats, her heartbeat heavy in her chest. “With me. To talk about everything.”
Kara bites at her bottom lip for a moment. “Like a date?”
Lena takes a deep breath if only to steady the shake in her hand. “Like a date,” she answers and Kara’s mouth slowly transforms into a brilliant smile. “Sort of.”
“A date,” Kara repeats like she can’t really believe what’s happening.
It’s a vulnerable moment and Lena beats back an insistent voice in her head that says she might regret this, that she’s making a mistake she’s been trying to avoid making for years. “Yes, a date,” Lena says with an encouraging smile. “You remember what that is, right? It’s where you explore the possibility of romance.”
“One day, you will stop making fun of me for that, right?” Kara asks, then gets a little more serious, stepping closer to Lena. “Are you sure?”
The question brings back an image of Kara leaned up against a hotel room wall, staring at Lena with desperate, sad eyes. When we do this again you have to be sure.
“I have always been sure of you,” Lena tells her quietly.
Kara smiles, looks down with an adorable scrunch of her nose. “Yeah?”
“I don’t want to be the person that stands in the way of us,” Lena says and Kara looks back up at her. “Not anymore. I want to figure this out. Together. If you want.”
Kara’s eyes seems to search Lena’s, darting around for a long moment before Kara grins wider. “Okay.”
“Okay?”
“Dinner,” Kara says with a nod. “To explore the possibility of romance.”
It isn’t exactly being together again, because there’s still so much they need to talk about. It isn’t dating, or calling Kara her girlfriend, but when she makes it back to the main room and climbs up the stage, she feels like the circles they’ve been chasing around each other all these years might finally be stopping.
--
They’re naked in Lena’s small bed, and somehow the conversation turns into Kara explaining myth after myth about the old Kryptonian Gods. Lena’s not sure how it happened really, but she listens with rapt attention.
Religion had been something fairly taboo in her very science oriented family and she finds herself undeniably intrigued when Kara speaks of the different belief structures on Krypton.
“So Flamebird was like, this god that would refresh the world through fire basically.”
“Like a phoenix?” Lena asks, tracing Kara’s ribs with her finger. Kara’s body feels blissfully warm against the chill of the room.
Kara thinks for a moment, likely trying to remember what a phoenix is exactly before nodding. “Yeah, I guess it is kind of, but a little different. Vohc, her brother, would build the world and then Flamebird would burn it down and he’d build it again in an endless cycle.”
Lena laughs a little. “I think Lex would appreciate this myth,” Lena comments and Kara pulls a face.
“Except they were kind of in love too,” Kara says and Lena’s lips twist even as she continues laughing.
“Okay, nevermind. Why do all pantheons have so much incest in their stories?”
Kara shrugs. “I don’t have an answer to that.”
Lena laughs a little. “Aren’t you supposed to have the answers to everything?”
“You’re confusing me with you,” Kara says, reaching up to tug on a loose strand of Lena’s hair.
Lena smiles indulgently, presses a warm kiss to the skin under her chin that makes Kara smile. “Okay, so there’s Flamebird and Vohc and they’re stuck in a cycle of build and destroy. Is that it?”
“That’s where Nightwing comes in. He was created by Rao to hunt down evils, but he wasn’t really allowed to walk among the other Gods. He was just stuck in the shadows keeping Rao safe.”
“Sounds lonely.”
Kara hums. “But he was allowed to be with Vohc and they were really close friends and then one day Vohc introduced Nightwing to Flamebird and they instantly fell in love.”
Lena props her chin up on Kara’s chest, slides a little closer. “Why do I get the feeling that isn’t going to end well?”
Kara’s palm slides up Lena’s spine. “Love triangles rarely do?”
“Remind me never to get involved in one.”
Kara laughs. “Why would that ever happen?”
Lena shrugs teasingly. “You never know.”
A look of feigned consideration shadows Kara’s face. “You did have lunch with Emily the other day,” she muses and Lena swats at her.
“Stop it,” she chastises, but she laughs when Kara pretends to get hurt by the hit. “Tell me the rest.”
“Vohc built this huge monument that was supposed to represent his love for Flamebird, but Flamebird’s duty was to destroy everything Vohc built. Rao had commanded it. So she did and it destroyed Vohc in turn. He stopped being a builder and became a breaker.”
“Loss can do that to a person,” Lena murmurs and Kara leans forward a bit to kiss her. They get lost in the feeling for a short moment before Lena laughs against Kara’s mouth.
“Finish the story before you try for round three,” she orders and Kara falls back against the pillows, groaning and smiling at the same time.
“Vohc was enraged,” she says with a shrug. “He wanted revenge, so he took a bunch of sunstone crystals and sealed Nightwing in the Phantom Zone.”
“The Phantom Zone? Like where you were?”
Kara nods. “Yeah. It’s separate from all time and space.”
“How sad,” Lena comments, dragging her hand over Kara’s stomach and enjoying the shiver that it brings up in Kara. “So they were just separated forever? Nightwing and Flamebird?”
“Not forever,” Kara says her tone turning into something more reverent, fitting a religious myth. “The point of the story is that Nightwing and Flamebird are interconnected in a way that can’t be denied or broken. Throughout the centuries no matter what tries to come between them they are destined to repeat the cycle over and over again.”
“The cycle of separation?”
Kara shakes her head. “They will always return to the world in some form, find each other and fall in love. Even though they may be betrayed by friends or separated by circumstance they’ll be reborn again and again solely to find each other.”
Lena is silent for a moment, thinking.
“Do you believe in that?”
Kara’s brow crinkles. “In the myth?”
“In destiny,” Lena clarifies.
Kara mulls over that, considers for a moment. “I believe in fate.”
“There’s a difference?” Lena asks.
“This is why you shouldn’t cut your philosophy credit,” Kara says pointedly and Lena groans, rolls her eyes.
“I’m a scientist, philosophy hardly feels important. I do the readings.”
An affectionate smile spreads across Kara’s face and Lena pushes up to kiss her, smiling against Kara’s mouth and enjoying the lazy feel of their bodies pressed together. “So you believe in fate,” Lena says when the pull apart, her finger tracing the line of Kara’s lip for a moment.
“Fate is like the way your life goes regardless of what you do about it. Like inevitability. You can fight against it, but you’ll always end up in a specific place. No matter what Nightwing and Flamebird do, they will always die and be reborn and meet. Those are like fixed points in time.”
“And destiny?” Lena asks.
“Destiny is something you have to take part in. Like an inner potential that you have to access. So like my cousin,” Kara says and Lena nods encouragingly. “I think my cousin was destined to be a hero, but he had to decide to be one for it to happen. He could have just as easily stayed hidden, never revealed himself to Earth as Superman.”
Lena’s not entirely sure she sees the distinction, but she smiles at Kara anyway. “So fate?”
“Fate,” Kara repeats, pulling Lena more solidly on top of her. “Are we done with the philosophy lesson now?”
“I don’t know. You had a point,” Lena teases. “I have been slacking in that class and it’s a graduation requirement. I should probably consider a tutor.”
“I’m very expensive,” Kara replies, before twisting them over so Kara’s the one pressing down against Lena.
Lena pretends to be confused. “I was talking about Emily,” she says barely able to smother her teasing smile. “She’s a philosophy major, I think, and-”
The rest of her words get drowned out by the sound of Kara’s laughter and the solid press of her lips against Lena’s.
--
They don’t manage to have dinner for the first week after New Year’s day entirely because Lena’s schedule goes crazy. The closer they crawl towards her mother’s court date the more work she’s had to do between meeting with lawyers and her PR team.
L Corp saw a bump in popular opinion after the charity event, but they’re still walking on thin ice as news coverage over her mother’s arrest continues, interspersed with anecdotes about Lex’s trial.
Lena’s had to cancel five dinners in a row each with profuse apologies that Kara’s laughed off. “No pressure, Lena,” Kara says with a smile in her voice.
“I don’t want you to think I’m avoiding it or going back on what I said,” Lena tells her and Kara just laughs again, soft and intimate.
“I know you’re not doing that. And I know you’re busy,” Kara says. “Sometimes I think you forget that I used to date you and I know what you’re like.”
They finally set a date almost three weeks after Lena actually asked her to dinner and she’s so close to being able to attend this one. It’s just a matter of clearing out her inbox and signing off on a few projects and she’s homefree.
As soon as the thought crosses her mind, she gets a call from an unknown number. For a good five seconds she considers letting it ring through to voicemail, but something possesses her to answer.
“Hello?"
“Lena? It’s Alex.”
Surprised, Lena sits back in her chair, turns a little to face the balcony. “Is everything okay?”
“I would like you to come into the DEO,” Alex says her voice unnaturally even, like she’s forcing it to stay steady. “Today. I’ve sent a car for you.”
“It’s the middle of a work day, Alex.”
“It’s an emergency,” Alex grits out and Lena’s stomach drops.
Silence for a brief moment, she turns more fully to the balcony and studies the blue sky. “Where’s Kara?”
“There’s a car outside your building,” Alex answers and Lena’s heartbeat picks up as she stands. “Please get in it.”
“Alex,” Lena protests, but the line has already disconnected and Lena is left glaring at her phone.
For a long moment she contemplates ignoring the directive, a tad irritated that Alex thinks she can just order her around, but there’s a tight feeling in the pit of her stomach that tells her Kara is in trouble. It’s the only reason Alex would reach out like that.
Lena checks her phone again, looks at the last messages Kara sent. Their conversation that morning had been a discussion about a story Kara had picked up - finally something interesting! not that i’m excited a girl is missing - and reminders about their date that night.
There was even a casual mention of maybe meeting for lunch before Kara told her i have to meet maggie to see if she can help with this case but i’m excited for dinner!
me too Lena had sent. be careful - hope you find the missing girl.
always is the last thing from Kara she has in her phone.
It’s been radio silence all afternoon and while that’s not unusual, necessarily, it does nothing to assuage her growing fear.
After packing up her stuff and informing Jess that she’s taking an offsite meeting, she heads down to find a black car waiting for her and a very DEO-looking gentleman at the wheel.
The ride towards the downtown base is silent and Lena tries to stop her brain from imagining worse upon worse scenario. She calls Kara halfway there because she can’t stop herself and three calls in a row go straight to voicemail.
Her watch hangs heavy on her wrist and she considers for a long moment pressing the button, but stops herself. Knows that if Kara is in trouble, but still in a place where she could hear the signal, it would be torture. If Kara’s hurt or - Lena tries not to go down dark mental paths, but her mind has never been great at straying away from those.
Alex is waiting for her when she gets to the DEO, pacing back and forth in as nervous and agitated manner as Lena has ever seen. She only stops moving when she sees Lena stride towards her.
“What happened?” Lena asks even though she can read it all over Alex’s face.
“Kara’s-” Alex’s lips purse, her hands on her hips. “Kara is missing.”
Lena’s jaw drops down a little and she blinks, perplexed. “I’m sorry?”
“Kara’s missing,” Alex repeats.
It’s like something physical dropping heavily in the bottom of her stomach.
“What does that mean?” Lena asks because her brain can’t wrap itself around the idea. Neither can her heart.
Alex looks uncharacteristically speechless then, no answer forthcoming and she can see the worry now in the rim of Alex’s eyes, in the unsteady way her hands sit on her hips. Alex never looks anything but stalwart and focused and seeing even the tiniest fracture in the girl across from her makes Lena ache with concern.
“I need your help,” Alex says softly and Lena steps forward and reaches out to squeeze at Alex’s forearm briefly, a swift gesture of comfort and solidarity.
“You have it,” Lena says firmly and Alex’s chin lifts a bit in response before she nods and turns.
Lena follows her up towards the central platform and wonders if wherever Kara is she can hear the heavy drumbeat of her heart.