590. Chapter 590

He still hasn’t quite forgiven himself.

For not realizing Alex was a lesbian, generally.

For not realizing she was falling in love with Maggie, specifically.

“I should have seen it; I should have been a better friend to you, Danvers,” he’d told her one drunken night, leaning into her shoulder unsteadily.

“How could you have seen it if even I didn’t, Winn? Come on, man, you’re a great friend.”

A pause.

“Don’t tell anyone I told you that, or I’ll be forced to silence you permanently.”

He’d let it go, but not really.

Not really, because Alex was always so focused on other people, on what’s best for other people.

He should have been more focused on her.

But now?

Now, he is.

Now, he is, and he notices.

He notices that Maggie leaves the bar early, with a part-terrified, part-angry look on her face.

He notices, and he shoves his hands deep into his pockets, and he makes a note to text Maggie later, to make sure she’s okay, to see if she wants him to come over.

But for now, he walks over to his first big sister.

“Alex?” he asks, and he watches her muscles ripple with tension.

“Yeah?” she asks without turning around, and he knows without needing to see her face that she’s close to tears.

“Everything okay? With uh… with you and my favorite pool shark?”

“Of course it is. Why wouldn’t it be? We’re getting married, aren’t we?”

She’s trying to snap at him, and she’s utterly failing.

He decides it’s safer not to point that out.

“You can be getting married and things can still be hard,” he reminds her, keeping his voice as casual as he possibly can.

She finally turns to look at him.

“Winn,” she starts, but she doesn’t finish.

Because there isn’t any teasing in his eyes, and there isn’t any judgment.

There’s just… love.

“Listen, Alex, you don’t have to talk to me. I know I’m not… I’m not Kara. And I’m not Maggie.”

“Thank god for that,” Alex teases, and Winn smiles, pulling a hand out of his pocket and touching her arm gently.

“It’s okay if you don’t want to talk to me. But you can. If you want to. And if you don’t want to… you should talk to Maggie. Because whatever it is… you two have been to hell and back together, Alex. And that doesn’t always mean that two people belong together. But you two? You do. And she deserves – you deserve, you both do – to talk it out instead of letting it… fester.”

“Since when are you my therapist?” Alex deflects, and Winn smiles, because he knows she heard him loud and clear.

“I love you, Alex. Okay? Talk to her. When you’re ready. Alright?”

She doesn’t speak, but she doesn’t have to.

He already knows.

And the next morning, he stays silent on the comm when Maggie asks Alex to talk to her, please.

He’s almost surprised when she does.

He smiles to himself when she does.

Because he’s so damn proud of her.

And, truth be told, a little proud of himself. That he said something to her.

Because if he can’t help Kara right now – if Kara won’t let herself be helped right now – then at least there’s one Danvers girl he can show love to.

He knows he should probably tell them he’s on the comm. Or shut it off.

But if he shuts it off, they’ll hear the click.

It’ll end the conversation.

If he interrupts to tell them he can hear them, it’ll end the conversation.

And he doesn’t want them to end their conversation.

So he bites his lip and his chest swells in pride that Alex is actually taking his advice.

Is actually talking.

His chest swells in pain when she talks about her father, and his chest swells in bittersweet love when Maggie talks about choosing family.

Because he knows exactly what she means.

He chose these two love nerds, after all.

And when he tells them – because he can’t lie to them, not now that Alex has said all she’s going to say for now – that he heard the whole thing, that they’re his favorite couple, he means every word.

His favorite couple, and his… well, his family.

And family gets to irritate and tease family.

So he grins, because the way he talks?

And the way Alex responds to him?

Like she’s his big sister, and he’s her little brother?

Maggie’s absolutely right.

Chosen family really is… life-giving.