Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Jump, Lena!”

The bright sunlight of the late morning streamed in through the windows. Lena’s eyes flew open then winced at the light. Her heart was pounding in her chest and her entire body shook from the panic induced by her nightmare. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath and rubbed her soft sheets between her fingers, grounding and reminding herself that she was safe at home. She opened her eyes again and took inventory of her bedroom. It took a few minutes but her heart finally calmed down. She stretched out her incredibly tired limbs, not wanting to emerge from her cocoon of warmth quite yet. Even if there hadn’t been nightmares there was a weariness that sapped the strength from her muscles. She had survived yet another attempt on her life, this time by Morgan Edge, but for some reason the event had left her shaken more than usual. Perhaps it was the pointed attack on her not being a Luthor—for once—but because she was Lena and she was actually doing some good in the world. To be attacked for being a “good guy” well now that was new on her list of attempted murder-related experiences. Save the world from killer Daxamites, get set-up and falsely blamed—something Lillian and Lex would never experience—for poisoning children. If it had been the other way around it would have been par for the course for the Luthor. Lena snuggled deeper into her blankets. Supergirl’s voice had been on a continuous loop in her head for two weeks now and it was an odd comfort.

"Climb, Lena! Climb!"

The hero's steely and sure gaze had turned into one of pleading and veiled desperation. Her tone was bordering on demanding that Lena choose herself. That Lena would try and save herself. Looking back Lena swore that she had even seen panic in Supergirl’s eyes. A chill went down her spine as she remembered looking down as the broken piece of the fuselage she had been in plummeted to the dark waters below them. She barely had time to register her near death experience before a strong arm yanked her up and wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer into inhuman warmth and security. Supergirl hadn't even made eye contact before flying off with the plane and chemicals in one hand and Lena secured to her side in the other, but she could see that the Kryptonian’s jaw was clenched tightly. When they had finally landed back on solid ground Lena had barely gotten out a thank you when Supergirl had nodded curtly, cutting her short, and then blasted off with barely restrained fury in her eyes. Lena had wanted to talk to the super but hadn’t seen her since the incident.

The smell of fresh coffee finally roused her from her nest of warmth. She glanced at her phone and was shocked to see that not only was it ten but that she had no missed calls, texts, or emails that were work related. Sam hadn’t been kidding when she had told, well really commanded, that she take an extended weekend to take care of herself. Lena smiled softly. Sam really was a great friend and she was eternally grateful that she had left Metropolis to help her out.

Lena padded softly into the kitchen, hair ruffled from sleep, glasses on, and in a well-worn soft MIT shirt and sleep shorts.

“Kara?” she yawned again.

There was no response. Lena wandered over to the coffee and smiled at the note that was left by it.

Morning! Thought I’d let you sleep in a little. Be back soon with brunch!

There was a little smiley face winking back at her. How in the world she ended up with such an amazing best friend like Kara Danvers still confounded her to this day. Lena poured herself a large mug and went to check the guest room. Per usual Kara had already made up the bed and cleaned up. The only telltale sign that anyone had even slept there was her pajamas tossed haphazardly onto an overnight bag. After her wine-induced breakdown at Sam’s Kara had been a constant presence in her life. Phone calls and texts throughout the day, lunches together, more frequent movie nights. Not that she was complaining, it was just something that she still wasn’t quite used to even after a year of friendship. Then again she never really had a friend quite like Kara. Her ears perked as her phone suddenly rang. She hurried back to it and grinned at the screen.

“Hey, Sam.”

“Morning!” chirped Sam. “Sounds like you just woke up.”

“I did, actually.”

“Good! That’s exactly what you needed to do. I’m glad you finally listened to me.”

Lena laughed good-naturedly. “Yes, yes, you were right.”

“I’m sorry? Am I speaking to Lena Luthor? Did you just say I was ‘right’ for making you take care of yourself?” Lena could hear the smile in Sam’s voice.

“I do take care of myself.” Lena scoffed with faux indignation.

“Not working on the weekend doesn’t count.” Sam laughed. “But seriously, how are you feeling?”

Lena took a sip of coffee and sighed. “I’m getting better. I think. The nightmares are still happening but I’m at least mostly sleeping through the night. And Kara made sure I ate quote actual food last night and is apparently now out fetching brunch. Which means I’ll probably be drowning in maple syrup, powdered sugar, and bacon soon.”

Sam laughed again. “That sounds awesome. So did she spend the night last night?”

“Yeah.” Lena smiled and bit her lip, feeling a blush tinge her cheeks. “We, em, had a movie night and she made it her goal to keep me distracted and relaxed.”

“So did it work?”

“Considering it’s ten and I just woke up, I think she might have done something right.” Lena chuckled.

“Are you planning on doing anything else today? Besides brunch that is.”

“Em…I’m not too sure. We hadn’t really talked about doing anything. And to be honest I would very much like to at least check my emails.” Lena held up her hand to stop Sam even though she knew she couldn’t see. “And I know, I know. I’m supposed to be relaxing. But honestly being out of the loop, even for just the weekend has me a little on edge.” Her eyes were downcast. “Especially after everything that has happened.”

“Don’t worry about Edge. We can handle him and I don’t think he will be pulling anything again after Supergirl saved you.”

“I don’t know.”

“Well then I have something that might help you take your mind off of things for a little bit.”

Lena quirked a brow. “And what exactly would that be?”

There was a knock on the door. Lena’s face scrunched in confusion. Maybe Kara had forgotten her key. She opened the door and came to a dead stop.

“Hi!”

Sam was all smiles as she waved. She hung up her phone. It wasn’t Sam that had brought Lena to a halt, but the creature that was standing at her side: a golden retriever.

Sam looked practically giddy. “Lena, meet Boomer.”

At the sound of his name Boomer’s tail began wagging and he looked up at Lena with a smile in his eyes.

Lena melted. “Oh my gosh, Sam! He’s adorable!”

She bent over and started scratching behind his ears. Lena had always loved animals but being a Luthor meant Lillian forbade any “beast” to live in the house and had declared any pets as “unseemly”.

“So you like him?” asked Sam.

“Well, of course I do.” Lena was all smiles as she looked at the dog. “Contrary to popular belief I’m not an ice queen. Oh, he has the softest ears.”

“Good! ‘Cause he’s yours!”

Lena’s smile fell and was quickly replaced by panic. “What?”

A loud gasp suddenly interrupted them.

“Puppy!”

Lena had been in such a state of shock that she hadn’t seen Kara return. Upon seeing the dog she had nearly dropped the bags of food in her hands to run over to him. Fortunately she had waited until she had gotten closer before gently putting down the bags and petting him. Boomer’s tail wagged so hard Lena was sure that he might throw his back out. Could dogs even do that? Kara’s laughter rang out as Boomer happily gave her hands licks.

“He’s so cute, Sam!” gushed Kara. “Is he yours? Where’d you get him?”

“Actually…he’s Lena’s.” Sam shot Lena a look that told her exactly how proud of herself she was for this one.

Kara’s eyes went wide. “What?”

“Mmhmm.” nodded Sam. “Since she won’t go to therapy I decided to bring therapy to her.”

Kara shot a somewhat worried look at Lena, not sure if her best friend was up to the challenge of being a pet owner. Before Lena could protest Boomer had decided to let himself in to the penthouse, pulling his harness and leash tight and dragging Sam with him.

“See? He loves it here.” smiled Sam.

Kara gathered her bags but didn’t let her eyes move from Lena for a moment.

“Sam, as much as I love animals I’m not exactly equipped for having a dog right now.” said Lena. “I mean, have I thought about it? Yes. But I imagined starting out with something like a fish or-or a cat. Something relatively low-maintenance that can handle my work schedule.”

Sam brushed her off. “Oh please. There’s dog nannies and walkers that can help you out. They have background checks and everything.”

“Seriously?” Lena’s brows were to her hairline. “Dog nannies?”

“It’s a thing.” Sam huffed. She gestured to Kara. “Back me up on this.”

Kara put the bags on the counter. “She’s right. Professional pet-sitters are a thing now.”

Lena shook her head and rubbed her eyes. “Sam, you bought me a dog.”

“No…I adopted a dog for you.” corrected Sam.

“How?” said Lena.

“Ruby insisted on going to a pet adoption thing in the park today. I walked in with every intention of letting her play with any animal she wanted, on the condition that we weren’t going to bring any of them home. And somehow we walked away with what I can only describe as a mini house panther and—” she gestured to Boomer. “—this guy. I swear, that kid’s going to be a lawyer or a car salesman.”

Kara couldn’t help herself and snorted with laughter. Lena crossed her arms and looked over at her.

“You know…Boomer is highly educated. He went to school. And I’m not talking just Obedience School.” Sam wagged an eyebrow.

“Really? Where?” Lena challenged.

“Golden Gate.” blurted Kara as she dissolved into a fit of laughter. “No! No! Wait! M-U-T!”

Sam laughed with her. Lena rolled her eyes.

“Mutt is spelled with two T’s.” Lena pinched the bridge of her nose. “You’re a writer, Kara, you should know that.”

Kara just continued to laugh and rolled her eyes. “It’s for the joke, Lena. Come on.”

Lena’s shoulders sagged. “Sam, you know I can’t do this. I can’t take care of a dog.”

“Yes you can.” replied Sam matter-of-factly. “You need him as much as he needs you.”

Lena resigned herself. She threw up her hands. “Fine. So where did he go to school?”

Sam smiled proudly. “Bomb school.”

Lena looked over her glasses at her in disbelief. “Bomb school?”

“Yep. Boomer here was actually second in his class.” said Sam. “A proper bomb-sniffing dog.”

Kara’s laughter stopped and she looked thoughtfully at Sam. “I can’t tell if that’s funny or just-”

Sam and Lena both looked at her.

“You know!” Kara gesticulated wildly. “Given all that has happened recently.”

“It has nothing to do with what happened.” Sam assured. “It’s just happenstance.”

Lena looked at Boomer as he continued to sniff his way around her place. “So if he’s trained then what in the world is he doing in my living room?”

“Well, according to the lovely NCPD dog handler that I was talking to, Boomer here was just too darn friendly. Something about being easily distracted.” said Sam.

They both looked back over at Boomer who was now climbing all over Kara who had somehow made her way unseen over to him and sat down on the floor. He could hardly contain himself as he licked all over her face while she laughed. Kara grabbed his face with both hands and smooshed it while cooing over him.

“Oh my goodness! Who’s a good boy? You are! Yes, you are! Oh, thank you for the kisses. Oh my gosh you’re so cute! So soft! So fluffy!”

Lena swore that if Kara had a tail it would be wagging just as furiously. Something deep down told her that there was no way she was going to get out of this and a small part of her didn’t want to either. She had to stifle a laugh at the scene. It reminded her of that movie Kara made her watch that one time with the little yellow men and the three little girls that were adopted by an ex-villain, specifically something about a stuffed unicorn. It had originally meant to make her laugh but ended with Kara hugging her while she tried, and failed, to keep her tears at bay. A villain who changed his ways and became the good guy and then adopted three little girls to become an amazing loving family together? Lena couldn’t relate.

She sighed and felt herself give in. “So he trained with NCPD’s bomb squad then?”

Sam smiled knowingly. “Yes ma’am. Like I said, he’s very smart. Actually, his entire litter had been chosen to train.”

“Really?” Lena was actually impressed.

“Oh my gosh!” gasped Kara suddenly. She looked the dog in the eye. “Your name is Boomer and you were on the bomb squad!”

She burst into another fit of laughter.

“If you think that’s funny his siblings were named: Cloud, Blu, Fuse, Ash, Spark, Bang, and Barney.” chuckled Sam.

“Barney?” snorted Kara.

“Named after that cartoon character from the Flintstones.” clarified Sam.

Kara quirked an eyebrow. “You mean Barney Rubble?”

“Yes! That one.” Sam pointed at her.

“Wait a minute.” Lena waved her hands. “Are you telling me that NCPD named their bomb dogs: Spark, Fuse, Blu, Boom, Bang, Cloud, Ash, Rubble?”

The room fell silent a moment as the information sunk in. Suddenly, all three of them erupted in laughter.

“That’s hilarious!” laughed Sam. “I didn’t even think about that!”

Kara was absolutely cackling as she fell over to the floor and Boomer dove in for more kisses. After a minute, and wiping away tears, she sat back up and continued petting Boomer.

“You know, back in Midvale the fire department had two dogs with names like that.” she said. “Bonnie and Si.”

“Those sound somewhat normal, Kara.” said Lena.

Kara shook her head. “Si, short for Siren. And Bonnie, short for Bonfire.”

That earned a snorting laugh from Sam. “So are you going to keep him, Lena?”

Lena had already wandered over and was knelt down and scratching behind Boomer’s ears again.

“I guess.” she sighed. “He really seems nice. But I still maintain that I’m not equipped to handle something like this.”

“Something tells me Kara is more than willing to help.” said Sam.

“Oh, that’s right.” Lena nodded in remembrance. “You had a cat growing up. Streaky.”

“Yes I did.” smiled Kara. “But I’ve always wanted a dog.”

“Really?” said Sam.

“Yep. Was even going to name him Krypto.” replied Kara. “But it just never seemed like the right time to get a dog.” She smiled widely at Lena. “Guess this means we’re going shopping after brunch!”

Boomer gently licked Lena on the nose and smiled at her and Lena knew her fate was sealed. She was now a dog mom.

* * *

Sam had politely declined staying for brunch, saying that she needed to get back to Ruby and to make sure that the cat hadn’t destroyed the furniture. She left all of Boomer’s paperwork and vet records with Lena and strict orders to have fun for the rest of the day. Lena had spent half of brunch going over all of the paperwork and the other half keeping Kara from giving Boomer pancakes and French toast. Though she did pretend to not see her slip him a sausage patty. Since Kara had had actual pet experience she had taken it upon herself to make out the list of everything that Boomer would need. And she kept him entertained while Lena took a shower and got ready for the day. By noon they were in Lena’s car and headed towards the pet store. Kara looked up dog groomers in the city and read out all of their reviews while Lena drove before moving on to the dog walking and pet sitting websites. By the time they made it to the store it had been decided, and to be confirmed after visual inspection, that Wigglebutts Dog Grooming would be the groomer of choice. Lena was thankful that the vet who treated all of NCPD’s dogs had still agreed to keep Boomer on as a patient so that made things much easier.

Once they got to the store Lena didn’t know who was more excited: Kara or Boomer. Had Kara not been already running with him he would have surely dragged her through the doors. Lena jogged to keep up with them and couldn’t help but laugh at how the first thing they both went to was a large display of toys shaped like food. Boomer weaved through Kara’s legs impatiently while she looked over the display before finally stopping right between her legs and looking up at her while she showed him different toys. That was something that Lena had noticed right away. Whenever Boomer would come over to Kara he would do that weaving thing a couple of times before stopping and sitting between her legs. He had done it after Kara had come back from the bathroom and when they got out of the car. As for Lena, Boomer decided that he loved to sit on her feet, thump his tail on the ground, and stare up at her with a smile and nothing but love in his eyes. Lena had never had anyone or anything look at her that way before and she wasn’t quite sure how she felt about it. Actually, no, that was a lie. She had seen that look before. Many times. But not in big brown eyes but in clear blue. The same blue eyes that had been fraught with worry when they had seen Lena not too long after Supergirl had saved her from certain death in that plane.

Lena snapped herself out of her thoughts as Kara excitedly called out to her.

“Lena! Look!”

She was smiling as she held up a stuffed toy that looked like a piece of pepperoni pizza and another that looked like either a dumpling or a potsticker.

“Lena you have to get these! They are so cute!” she practically squealed.

Boomer was already happily holding an absurdly large turkey drumstick toy in his mouth.

“Fine.” Lena laughed. “But I think he needs real food too. Carnivores can’t exactly live off of microfiber cotton and fleece.”

Boomer shifted the toy around in his mouth until he found the squeaker and began chewing on it. Lena winced.

“On second thought, do they have anything quieter?”

Kara felt around the toys in her hands. “These ones don’t. But come on, Lena, he needs at least one squeaky toy.”

“Fine. But only one.” said Lena. “It’s already more than enough to give me a headache.”

“Pfft.” Kara waved her off. “Oh, stop being so dramatic. You’re fine.”

Lena quirked a dangerous sculpted brow at her and almost instantly Kara flushed and looked away. Their trip ended up taking an hour longer than they originally had intended thanks to Lena insisting on reading every single label of every dog food brand and comparing them before ultimately deciding on the meat-heavy “farm fresh” refrigerated brand that was made locally. Kara had joked about needing to buy a second refrigerator just for dog food and Lena had to stop herself before comparing new appliances and pulling up the floor plans of her penthouse to figure out the perfect location for one. Thankfully, the local brand also did biweekly and monthly deliveries. It would only take a couple of days for her to calculate exactly how much Boomer ate then she could set up the delivery service for his exact needs. Despite all her careful calculations it didn’t stop Kara from sneaking a few different brands of treats into the cart as well as a few more toys that were—thankfully—devoid of any squeaking or additional sounds, but specifically made for chewing so that Boomer didn’t chew up her stuff. There was also a rather interesting purchase that Kara had explained as “kitty litter but for dogs”. It was a patch of fake grass that could be placed on her balcony so that if Boomer needed to go potty in the middle of the night, Lena could just open the balcony door instead of having to walk all the way down to the street and walk him around. While they finished their shopping Kara had babbled on about needing to keep Boomer on a routine as much as possible to avoid accidents and to get him used to Lena’s schedule. They debated crate training with Lena ultimately deciding it would be for the best for him to learn just in case, for whatever reason, someone had to keep him overnight or for a few days while she was on a business trip.

When they were finished Kara had suggested taking Boomer to the park to let him stretch his legs and let out something she had termed “the zoomies”. And to her credit, Sam had been right about him being well trained. Despite his tendency to run up to any human he saw, he diligently obeyed the command to stay whenever there was another dog or a rogue squirrel. Lena soon found herself laughing and enjoying the sunny weather as Boomer raced after a ball she had thrown. Eventually, he needed a break and she got to use the new portable water dish to give him a drink. When he had recovered, and she had Kara had had an ice cream break under a shady tree, Boomer had decided that he still had some energy to burn. And Lena took great delight in watching him play with Kara. It wasn’t because Kara looked so happy and beautiful in the bright sunlight. And it surely wasn’t because she enjoyed watching Kara’s muscles flex in her arm as she played tug of war with Boomer and his new rope toy. No, it wasn’t any of that at all. It was because for the first time in weeks she had completely forgotten about the plane and was simply living in the joy of the moment. Kara just happened to be a big part of it, that’s all. It meant nothing that her heart fluttered as she watched Kara and Boomer play before trying her hand at tug of war.

Nope. Nothing at all.

Chapter Text

The sun had just started to peek over the horizon when Lena woke up. The night had been blissfully devoid of nightmares for the first time since the incident and whatever weariness that had weighed her down previously seemed to be gone as well. She sighed contentedly and burrowed deeper into the warmth of her bed but suddenly froze. There was an unknown weight on her feet and a human-sized radiator at her back. Not only that but as she carefully lifted her blankets and looked down she saw an arm draped securely over her waist. Her brain scrambled for an answer.

Last night.

Last night Kara had stayed over again to help her with Boomer which Lena later figured out to be code for “watch a dozen dog movies that are apparently childhood staples”. Air Bud, Balto, 101 Dalmatians (the live action version), and then finally the live action Scooby Doo—Kara had insisted that Lena would find a kindred spirit with Velma. They had started out eating in the living room while watching the movies and then at some point Lena’s eyelids had started to get heavy and Kara had suggested that they stop. Initially, Lena had agreed, but sitting next to Kara on the couch with Boomer comfortably between them…Lena wasn’t ready to give that up quite yet so she suggested that they all move to her bed to finish their marathon. The last thing she remembered was seeing Scooby somehow riding an ATV.

Lena slowly and carefully rolled over enough to see Kara sleeping soundly curled up behind her. Her glasses were still on and looked painfully askew but endearingly adorable. Lena felt her heart rate pick up and forced herself to look away. She shouldn’t be so comfortable like this. Yes, best friends have sleepovers, even as adults, but the fluttering in her chest and the butterflies in her stomach, now that wasn’t something normal between friends. If Lena were to be honest with herself this wasn’t the first time she had felt like this towards Kara. Once again the plane incident had put a giant spotlight on her feelings.

It had been only thirty seconds since Supergirl had dropped her and the chemicals off safely before blasting back into the sky with raw fury in her eyes when Lena found herself swarmed by the FBI and various medical personnel. She was still shaking from the experience and the shock hadn’t yet worn off. The lights were too bright and everyone sounded like they were talking to her under water. She had put on a brave face and had insisted that she was fine and technically it wasn’t a lie, she was perfectly fine physically. The first crack in her armor was seeing the familiar, and very concerned, face of Alex Danvers. Alex had thankfully pulled her away from the mob and took refuge near her FBI issued SUV. Lena was grateful that the elder Danvers was calm and straight to the point, keeping her in logic mode instead of survival. It was a welcome distraction from the thoughts bouncing around in her mind. In the brief moment when she thought that Supergirl would listen to her in order to save the chemicals there was only one thought in her mind: I’m sorry, Kara.

Yes, Lena had regrets that she wouldn’t be able to live her life to find out what her true potential for good and change in the world could be, but that wasn’t what she was thinking about. She was thinking about how her death would affect Kara. How those bright blue eyes and sunny smile would be dulled and marred by grief. How much it would hurt her best friend. Her heart had ached tremendously in that moment. But thankfully she had another friend—something that she still was getting used to and couldn’t believe—in Supergirl. Supergirl had believed in her even when no one else would. The hero had leant her some of her strength, her hope, in the moment and Lena found the will to live, to climb. For herself, for Kara. And now as she stood surrounded by people she had never felt more alone in her life. All she wanted was to see her best friend and tell her that she was sorry and to hug her close.

So now here she was, in bed—platonically—with her best friend and it was causing a war with herself. Lena had always figured that she was straight. She had only ever dated men and the only possible true love of her life had been Jack. She never even considered the possibility that she could fall for a woman. Kara’s steady rise and fall of her chest in her back was so comforting, so grounding. So did that mean she was into women? Lena took advantage of her still slumbering bed companions and looked back over her life. Nothing in particular stood out to her. Sure, she had looked at other women but it was always in comparison to herself. The voice in her head while doing said comparison was always Lillian’s but that was something to unpack another time. She had had female friends throughout her life but she had never wanted to kiss them or anything.

Wait.

Did she want to kiss Kara?

Lena bit her lip in thought. She wasn’t exactly sure. Yes, it felt amazing laying here in bed with her but did she actually want to kiss her?

And therein laid the crux of the situation.

As much as Lena had known loneliness and being her own company for most of her life, Kara had brought not only herself but others as well. Now she had Kara, Alex, Winn, James, and even Sam was back. So maybe that was it? Maybe she didn’t really have those kinds of feelings for Kara, she simply craved her company now because she didn’t like being alone anymore?

But then what about the plane? What about the thought she had had in the moments before what she thought was surely her death?

Lena let out a long sigh and adjusted herself slightly, unconsciously settling into Kara’s warmth. Every muscle in her body suddenly tensed as she felt the arm around her waist tighten ever so and pull her a little closer. Kara was just doing that because she was still asleep, right? Because Lena knew Kara, and Kara had never given any indication that she was anything but straight either. Right?

The question-causing arm loosened and slipped from around her waist as she felt Kara roll on her back and stretch. The movement roused Boomer who apparently was very much a morning person. He wasted no time in pouncing on Kara and licking her face.

“Well good morning to you too!” she chuckled.

Lena’s eyes widened in surprise as Boomer suddenly turned his slobbery affections on her. A genuine giggle escaped her lips without her permission as she tried to both pet him and push him off.

Kara popped up out of bed and tried to get his attention. “Come on, leave your mommy alone. She’s not a morning person, goofy.”

Boomer relented and followed Kara out of the bedroom.

“Let’s get you outside so you can potty, okay? Then…BREAKFAST!”

Lena shook her head. Of course Kara had food on the brain first thing in the morning. She kicked off her blankets.

“Wait for me!” she shouted to the over-eager duo.

Her heart had done a funny little flip when Kara had called her mommy but she just shoved it down and filed it away for later.

“Hurry up, Lena!” Kara shouted back. “Boomer’s doing the ‘I gotta pee’ dance!”

“He isn’t the only one.” Lena shot back at her.

In all it only took about three minutes for the three of them to get down to the street. Lena was holding on for dear life as Boomer pulled her to every tree, insisting on leaving his mark on each of them as well. Kara just laughed. Eventually, Boomer eased up and they were walking at a casual pace.

“So how are you liking being a dog mom?” said Kara.

Lena thought a moment. “It’s…interesting. Can’t say I’ve ever experienced anything like it before. I almost feel like I have a toddler. With all of the toys and the schedule. Not to mention vet check-ups and groomer appointments.”

Kara just grinned. “At least he’s a good boy.”

“That he is.” nodded Lena.

Kara looked thoughtful for a moment. “Toddler.” she thought out loud. She looked at Lena. “Do you think you’d ever want kids?”

“Em…” Lena blinked. “To be perfectly honest I hadn’t thought too much about it. With L-Corp and my family I never thought I would have the time. Not to mention I don’t know if I would want to subject a child to Lillian and Lex.”

Kara nodded thoughtfully.

“But…” Lena let out a breath. “I suppose if I met the right person. Not just someone I loved but a partner that I could really trust…” she shrugged. “I think I would like to have a small family. You know? An actual family.”

Kara smiled. “I want kids too.”

“Any specific number?”

“Definitely more than one.” Kara turned a little somber. “I grew up as an only child. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the relationship that I had with my parents. But when the Danvers’ adopted me and I suddenly found myself with a sister…” she shrugged. “I don’t know. I think I would like to have at least two but I’m open to more. Like you said. If I found the right partner.”

“Before his megalomania took over, Lex and I were quite close.” Lena smiled sadly. “I would like to think that if I had kids that they could be like that. But, then again, they will still have Luthor genetics.”

“Don’t say that.” Kara stopped.

Lena met her gaze.

“I’m serious, Lena. Look at you. You are nothing like your family.” Kara said seriously.

Lena felt her heart flip again.

“You are good, Lena. You are kind and brilliant and-and amazing. And any kid would be so lucky to have you as a mother.” Kara smiled softly.

Lena tried to fight the blush creeping up her neck. Leave it to Kara to genuinely tell her things that no one had ever said to her before. She tried to hide her blush with a smile.

“And any kid would be just as lucky to have you.”

Kara couldn’t help herself as she glanced down at her feet, bit her lip, and blushed as she smiled. Was Kara just as affected as Lena was? No. No, that’s just Kara.

They finished their walk and went back to Lena’s penthouse. In a show of gratitude for everything Kara had done for her and helped with, Lena made a massive breakfast for them. When it was over Kara had finally realized that she had a whole life outside of Boomer that she had to get back to. She had played tug of war with him one last time before giving him a kiss, and giving Lena a hug, before heading out. That left Lena alone with Boomer for the first time since he first arrived. Boomer had spent the first few minutes staring at the door and crying before sulking on the couch. Lena sat down next to him and gently started petting him.

“I know how you feel. Kara tends to have that effect on people.”

Boomer turned his head and licked her hand and gave her a smile.

Lena spent the rest of the day trying to occupy her mind with anything and everything possible to keep her from ruminating on her lazy, fuzzy, Kara-filled Sunday morning. Sam still had her barred from doing any work until she returned to work tomorrow so that was a dead end. At first she had been able to catch up on some science and tech journals that she had been meaning to read for weeks. Boomer would chill on the couch with her or play with his toys. But as the hours ticked by the neat little box she had shoved everything Kara related into had opened itself up and dumped the contents all over her brain. She sighed loudly and tossed the journal on the coffee table. Boomer looked up at her from his latest chewing session. Lena took off her glasses and rubbed her eyes. She met his gaze and a thought crossed her mind. Sam had called him therapy. She patted the cushion next to her and he happily hopped up and laid across her lap. The silence was deafening as she debated with herself. Minutes ticked by as she gently stroked Boomer’s head.

“I think—I think I might like Kara.” she said softly.

At hearing her name Boomer’s tail happily started thumping against the couch.

“But I don’t even know what that means.” she continued. “At least, I don’t think so. I don’t know. This morning was…something.”

She mentally kicked herself for still refusing to be honest. She took a deep breath.

“It was more than something. I really liked it. But that’s just because I’ve never been that close with anyone, right? I mean, there was Jack. We were together for a while and it was nice. He was so unlike the Luthors. Until that point in my life I had never experienced anyone quite like that. But, as with everything else in my life, my family happened. L-Corp happened. And life kind of got away from me.”

Lena couldn’t help the smile that reflexively came next.

“Then I met Kara.” she chuckled. “God, she was so eager to prove herself. And I wasn’t kidding, she really did have me thinking that she was a reporter, albeit a little bit of a green horn, but still, she certainly had promise. She brought so much warmth into my life that it was honestly kind of a shock to the system. I hadn’t realized how much my life had changed, how much I had changed, since Jack. How…empty it actually was. Sure, I had L-Corp and business trips and galas and other social events that kept my calendar packed, but my life was otherwise devoid of meaningful human interaction.”

Lena twirled Boomer’s golden hair between her anxious fingers.

“I have a habit of keeping people at an arm’s distance, I know that. It’s a defense mechanism born out of necessity. If you grew up in the house that I did, you would have that problem too.”

Boomer answered her by rolling over. Lena just shook her head and scratched his belly.

“Or maybe not. You made it through some pretty stressful training and you turned out all right. Then again, you are more like someone we both know. Which brings me back to why I’m here, doctor.” Lena laughed through her nose and rolled her eyes. “God, maybe I do need therapy.”  She let her head fall back against the back of the couch and stared at the ceiling. “I don’t know what I feel about her, Boomer. I really, really do care for Kara. She’s the most incredible friend I’ve ever had but…” tears started to fill her eyes and she looked back down at Boomer and spoke in a small voice. “What if these feelings I’m having…what if they are more than just friendship? Never mind questioning my sexuality. It honestly doesn’t matter because even if these feelings are less than platonic, Kara would never feel the same. And I know, I know I’m assuming that Kara is exclusively straight and very sure of herself….but can you blame me? Mon-el leaving nearly destroyed her, Boomer. I know I’ve only known Kara for just over a year, but I’ve never seen her like that before.”

Lena’s hand stopped and Boomer looked at her.

“…And I was the cause of it.”

She picked at her fingers. As tears stung her eyes.

“I don’t want to hurt her, Boomer. I don’t even know how I feel but I know for certain that I don’t want to ever hurt Kara again.”

“I can see why Kara loves you.”

Those words had rattled around in her mind for days after. Back then Lena, though she hadn’t shown it, it had meant more than Mon-el would ever understand. Even in a strictly platonic manner. Love wasn’t something that had been abundant in her life growing up, if anything she could almost argue that the Luthors even condemned the very notion of it. And whatever form that they had allowed was twisted and deformed.

She started petting Boomer again.

“If these feelings are something…more, then I will just have to live with them, I think. I would rather have Kara in my life as just a friend than not have her at all. And I know she’s completely accepting of Alex but…” she shook her head. “I’m getting ahead of myself. I still don’t even know what any of this—” she gestured to nothing in particular. “—is.”

She took a deep breath and wiped her eyes and looked at him.

“Thanks for listening. I think I owe you a treat or two.”

Boomer’s ears immediately perked up and he leapt off of the couch and started dancing in place. Lena just chuckled and paid for her therapy session.

Chapter Text

"So let me get this straight. Thanks to Sam, Lena now has adopted a bomb-sniffing dog named Boomer. And you spent the last three days staying over at her place. Is that why you blew me off this weekend?"

"It wasn't three days, Alex." Kara said around a mouthful of pizza. "I went over there Friday after work. And since J'onn gave me the weekend off and Sam ordered Lena to take it easy we just ended up hanging out."

Alex shot her a look from across the table. "It's one in the afternoon on a Sunday and you just got home, Kara." She gestured to the apartment around her.

"Okay so maybe I stayed a little longer because Lena needed help with Boomer." Kara picked at her pizza. "She's never had a pet before and it was pretty obvious she didn't know where to start."

"Mmhmm." Alex took a drink. "It would have nothing to do with your love of dogs and the fact that you and Lena have basically been inseparable since the plane."

Kara actually put down her pizza as her mood shifted and her eyes were downcast. "I almost lost her, Alex. Again. First the poison and now the plane...just...please tell me that you got Edge."

Alex leaned heavily on the table. "We were able to recover the black box from the plane and traced the control signals to a warehouse just outside the city but didn't find anything. And since we couldn't trace the poison back to him..." her face fell as Kara's did. "I'm sorry, Kara. We will get him. I promise you. Edge is dangerous and unhinged. I mean for God's sake he literally poisoned children just to make Lena look like a villain. He's desperate and I don't care how smart he is, he will make a mistake."

Kara's jaw clenched. "I could have killed him, Alex. He was just standing there...gloating. Telling me that I was just another cape that didn't have the guts to do what needed to be done. I swear, if he didn't hate Lena and L-Corp so much it's almost like he could be partners with Lex."

"Just to be clear you didn't kill him, right?" Worried Alex.

"No, Alex, I didn't kill Edge." said Kara in exasperation. "I should have just dropped his ass off on another container ship. Maybe somewhere in the arctic..."

Alex took a bite of her pizza while Kara picked at hers.

"I think I'm going to tell Lena that I'm Supergirl."

Alex stopped mid-bite. "Are you serious?"

"Yes."

Alex reached across the table and took her hand. "Look, I know Lena is your best friend but you have got to be careful. You already risked your identity when you flew her to the DEO. God knows what would happen if you slipped up and Edge figured it out."

"I know." Kara fidgeted with her hands in her lap. "And I know keeping my identity from Lena will keep her safe, especially now, but...but I'm starting to question it. Winn knows, James knows, Lucy knows, and they're all fine. Hell, even when Rhea kidnapped her it wasn’t because Lena knew my identity. And even Maggie knows. Sorry."

Alex winced. "It's okay."

Kara took a deep breath. "It's just that...what more danger could it put Lena in? She's had more than her fair share of attempts on her life. The Venture explosion, the drone attack on her helicopter, poison. And now the plane? Not a single one of those has to do with Supergirl. And I'm worried. What if I can't stop whatever comes next?"

Alex furrowed her brow. "You can still keep her safe. I mean, just because you aren't Supergirl when you are around her as Kara doesn't mean that Supergirl isn't still there."

"But that's just it, Alex. I'm tired of having to be two different people around Lena. I'm tired of lying." She got up from the table and went over to the couch and threw herself down. "But I don't want to give up just being Kara around her either. There's no expectations. Does that make sense?"

"Yeah." Alex sighed as she sat down next to her. "As a DEO agent I would rather you not tell yet another person because that just means more paperwork." She sighed dramatically. "But you make a good point."

Kara leaned over and dropped her head on Alex's shoulder. "When Mon-el—” she shook her head. “—When the Daxamites were invading and I found out that Lillian knew my identity she told me that she wouldn’t tell Lena because, in her words, when Lena founds out that I’ve been lying to her this whole time that she will hate me for it. And I know Lena isn’t like Lex or Lillian, but a part of me worries that maybe-maybe Lillian is right. That if I tell her now after all this time, that it will do nothing but hurt her. So what do I do? I can’t keep lying to Lena but I don’t want to give up just being Kara with her but if I don’t tell her now and even more time passes it could be even worse.”

She took a deep shaky breath. “Am I being selfish?”

“I can’t tell you what to do, Kara.” Alex said softly. “And I don’t think you’re being selfish.” she rubbed Kara’s arm gently. “But did you ever think about that maybe, just maybe, Supergirl won’t get in the way of your friendship?”

Kara sat up and looked at her. “What do you mean?”

“Think about it. You were the first person to see Lena as just Lena and not a Luthor. Even Clark struggled with that. So do you think it’s possible that maybe she will still just see you as Kara? Not as Supergirl?” said Alex.

Kara thought a moment but then bowed her head. When she looked back up at Alex there were tears in her eyes.

“I’m so scared, Alex.” she fought the tears. “I already lost Mon-el. I can’t…keeping Lena safe from physical threats is something I can do. But if I lose her because-because of keeping the truth about myself, about Supergirl, from her…I-I don’t think I could handle that.”

Alex pulled her into a tight hug as her walls finally crumbled and her tears fell freely. It took some time before Kara calmed down. Alex had refused to leave until she was sure that Kara was sure that she was fine. After what felt like an eternity of telling Alex that she was okay, Alex finally left.

After letting all of her tears out Kara wanted nothing more than to just crawl into bed and bury herself in her blankets and all of the sugar in her apartment. So that’s exactly what she did. A dozen cupcakes and half a tub of ice cream later and she was still no closer to a decision. Alex had made a solid point about how she saw Lena as Lena and that odds were that Lena could do that same with her. So she let her mind wander for a bit. What if she were to tell Lena? She would have to plan everything. Where she did it, how she did it, every single word that she would use. It had to be perfect because there would still be a chance that what Lillian had said would happen, would. That Lena would retreat behind her walls that she had so carefully cultivated all her life thanks to the Luthors. That she would lose Lena forever. Trust was something so delicate, so precious to Lena, and no matter how Kara went about it, telling her about Supergirl would break it no matter what.

She needed to clear her head.

Kara quickly changed into her super suit and flew out her window. As she hovered high over the city she closed her eyes and took a deep cleansing breath. Maybe she wasn’t giving Lena enough credit. Maybe it wouldn’t be the end of their friendship if she told her the truth. Maybe it was better to rip the proverbial bandaid off now than years down the road. Lena and Supergirl were in a good place, possibly could even be considered friends.

Her heart ached deeply and she could feel more tears threatening to build. She had had close friends before and always deeply cared about those closest to her, but it honestly confounded her why she felt the way she did whenever Lena was in trouble. The only reason why Edge wasn’t a pile of ash was not just because that’s not what she wanted to be known for, but because Lena would never forgive Supergirl for killing someone even if it was meant to protect her. And Rao forbid that Lena then find out that it wasn’t just Supergirl that murdered someone but her best friend Kara. There would be no coming back from that. Kara’s eyes started to glow ever so faintly and balled her fists as the rage came bubbling back up. The moment she realized Lena had been poisoned she didn’t care if the entire city saw her flying through the sky, the only thing that mattered in the moment was saving Lena.

She started lazily flying around trying to cool herself off.

The plane incident had rattled her more than she had initially thought. Which is why when Lena was open to spending so much time together, Kara had readily jumped at the opportunity. Edge was still free which meant the danger was still out there. So it only stood to reason that if Kara was always around Lena, then she would be better able to keep her safe. But Kara had seen the weariness in Lena’s eyes Friday night and knew that she would probably have to give her space to deal with everything. But a part of her, an admittedly selfish part, hadn’t wanted to leave. Which is why she never thought she had been so happy to see a dog in her life. And when said dog now belonged to new and inexperienced pet owner Lena, well it was just the nice thing to do to stay and help. At least that is what she had told herself. Of course getting to play with such an awesome dog like Boomer was an amazing added bonus. Kara had really truly always wanted a dog but with her previous job as Cat Grant’s assistant and then Supergirl, she really wouldn’t be able to take care of one properly. But now that Lena had Boomer it was almost like having her own dog. However, Boomer had brought about a problem. No, not a problem. An issue? A situation. Boomer had brought about a situation and a rather perplexing one at that. When she woke up Sunday morning in Lena’s bed holding Lena that was…something.

Kara was completely relaxed for the first time since the plane. She was burrowed in warm blankets and feeling comfortably lazy. But then her brain remembered where she was. And then it sensed that something was…different. There was a body pulled closely to her front. An incredibly soft and warm body. Lena. Lena was technically in her arms. Lena was technically in her arms and pressed up against her. Kara quickly recalled sleepovers she had with other friends when she was younger, not once did she remember waking up like this. What was even happening? She felt Lena move and instinctually stiffened. Trying to not give herself away she did her best to stay calm and quickly loosened her arm and rolled away and stretched as if she had only just woken up. Blessedly, Boomer woke up and immediately attacked her with kisses, allowing her rouse to continue. She may have also used him as an excuse to bolt out of bed before Lena could say anything. If she would say anything. Had she even noticed? Surely she had. She was the one who moved in the first place. Or maybe she moved because she had just woken up? It was all a little too much to think about. Kara had enough on her plate with trying to figure out whether or not she was going to tell Lena about Supergirl. The last thing she needed was to throw in was this situation. Was it even a situation? Maybe she was just overreacting. Yes, that was it. It meant nothing. It was just Kara’s subconscious be protective over Lena even in sleep. That’s all.

That’s all.

Kara blinked the world back into focus and found herself floating outside of Lena’s penthouse. She was curled up on the couch with Boomer and seemed to be talking to him. Kara refused to let her ears work. There was no reason for her to listen to what Lena was saying. After a minute Lena smiled and said something that made Boomer get excited. She got up and gave him a treat. Kara smiled. Sam made the right call in getting him for Lena. Her heart fluttered in her chest as she felt warmth and happiness flood her body. She loved making Lena smile because Lena had the best smile and Kara wanted the world to see it. Not just the one that Lena presented to the world but the one that showed the real Lena, the smile that reached to her eyes and caused them to crinkle and the deep dimples that appeared.

The light turned on in her bedroom and Kara caught a glimpse of the bed. Her heart fluttered again but this time it felt differently. The brief memory from before she had fully woken up came back full force. She liked the way it had felt waking up with Lena like that. Kara’s eyes went wide and she suddenly blasted off and almost crashed into her own apartment. In a blur she was out of her suit and back in her pajamas and started furiously pacing.

What the hell did that mean? She liked waking up like that? Did that even mean anything? No. No. No it did not. It was just her subconscious being happy that Lena was safe. Right? Right. Sure. Yeah. That’s it. And besides Lena was her best friend. Best friends are close. They sometimes spend extended amounts of time together and sometimes they even fall asleep in the same bed. Totally and completely normal. Except…except there was something niggling in the back of her mind that was voicing its doubt. Friends don’t want to hold each other like that. Not even best friends. No matter how right it had felt.

Kara came to a literal screeching halt as her bare feet squeaked on the floor.

Wait.

It had felt…right?

She shook her head. This was all too much. She needed to figure out how she was going to tell Lena that she’s Supergirl, not…whatever this is. Not that it was a thing to begin with. No. Because if it was that would mean having to dive into the minutia of not only their friendship, but a part of her that she had unceremoniously shoved down shortly after they had first met.

Why had she done that in the first place?

Nope. Nope. No. Not going there. Not going there. Danger, Will Robinson! Danger!

Kara physically shook her head.

Back to the original issue at hand: how to tell Lena that she is Supergirl. It would probably be best to give Lena the home field advantage that way if it didn’t exactly go to plan Kara could just leave and Lena could still feel like she was in a safe place. Okay, the location was set. She should just keep things normal so work clothes and definitely not the super suit. Now how to tell Lena…

Her mind was a total blank. Kara Danvers, writer by profession and passion, had no words. She had written handfuls of articles about Lena for the past year and now…now words failed her. Because now, the words weren’t about showing the world who Lena really was, the words were about showing Lena who Kara was. Kara who is her best friend. Kara who had proclaimed time and time again that the Luthor name didn’t deserve Lena. Kara who had promised to never hurt Lena like the Luthors had.

Kara flopped back on her bed. Rao, she knew how much this was going to hurt. When she had found out how Mon-el had lied to her about who he really was it had hurt pretty bad and had initially only reinforced everything she had believed about Daxamites.

Mon-el.

While Kenny might have been her first love, Mon-el had been her first real, adult relationship. They had had their ups and downs—mostly downs—but that didn’t make it hurt any less when she had chosen the world over him. Something that, according to her own cousin, he could never do with Lois. It hurt like hell but she had done it, she had sent her love away and in the process saved the world. The anger that she had felt towards herself had started to get out of control. All she wanted to do was punch, break, tear, crush, destroy, and fry with her heat vision. And admittedly some of that anger bolstered the rage that she had felt when she confronted Edge. Yet again both Kara and Supergirl were falling short of keeping those around her safe.

She let out a dramatic groan. Everything was all tangled and connected and turning into an emotional rollercoaster that she didn’t have the stamina for at the moment. She got up and started getting ready for bed. Once she was finally in bed in the dark she closed her eyes and sent a silent prayer that she would sleep and that the words would come to her.

Spoiler alert: sleep didn’t happen and the words didn’t come. She almost crushed her phone when her alarm went off a few hours later. Monday was going to be a hell of a day.

Chapter Text

Lena stood tall in the elevator with a small smile. She was feeling particularly energetic this morning despite her unexpected early morning phone call from Alex—Lena knew from the get go that despite finding the Acre Lee Chemical connection that trying to pin anything on Edge would take forever considering the impossible corporate maze of paperwork he most likely buried it under. After the call and prior to coming to CatCo she had briefly stopped in at L-Corp to thank Sam in person for her four-legged therapist and to tell her everything that happened the rest for the weekend. Including how much Kara played with Boomer and how momentarily depressed the dog was when she left. That had earned her a quirked brow from Sam but no comment. After making sure that things were still running smoothly Lena made her way over to CatCo and anxiously checked the time the entire way there. She had felt guilty for crating Boomer but it needed to be done. He needed to get used to it plus despite the overwhelming plethora of toys to choose from, there was always a chance that he could decide that something very expensive of Lena's needed tenderizing. She was meeting with a potential dog walker later today so if things worked out Boomer would get a midday break at least.

The doors slid open and immediately Lena looked for Kara. Kara's back was to her and it looked like she was leaning on her arm and intently reading whatever was on her computer screen. Lena smiled and walked over to her.

"Hey, Kara-"

She cut herself off. Kara was sound asleep with a blank document opened on her screen. Lena quickly switched from friend mode to boss mode, raising the volume of her voice.

"I'm sorry, Miss Danvers, is work getting in the way of your beauty rest?"

Kara jolted awake, nearly tipping back in her chair. Wide eyes caught Lena's gaze as her brain finally fired on all cylinders.

"Lena! Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry!"

Lena couldn't help but laugh. "It's okay, Kara. Are you alright? You are the poster child for being a morning person, and yet I catch you quite literally sleeping on the job at-" she checked her phone, "-9:45 am?"

Kara was all sorts of flustered as she fidgeted with her glasses. "I'm fine. Really. I just didn't sleep too well last night is all."

"Oh." said Lena. "Anything I can help with?"

Kara couldn't help herself and barked a laugh. "Ah, no. No. It's okay. I'm okay. Don't worry. It's nothing."

"Mm." hummed Lena. “Doesn’t seem like nothing.”

Kara fidgeted with a pen on her desk. “It’s Alex. Well, not exactly Alex. We, um, talked yesterday and she told me some things about Edge.”

“Ah.” Lena nodded. “I suppose she told you how there isn’t enough evidence to support him being the direct cause of the poisonings. While Edge’s company may have acquired Acre Lee Chemical seven years ago that’s not enough to convict him directly of anything.”

“Yeah. They could only bring him in for questioning.” Kara cocked her head. “How did—“

“Alex called me this morning.” said Lena. “She wanted to update me on everything. Can’t say I’m surprised.”

Kara turned serious. “We will get him, Lena. He can’t just go walking around free after what he did to those kids. After what he did to you.”

Lena looked down and fidgeted with her fingers. Kara knew that she had gone to talk to Edge but what she didn’t know was that Lena had let her Luthor genes take over and there had been a very legitimate threat on his life with a gleaming revolver in her hand.

“Too bad Supergirl can’t drop him off on a container ship in the middle of nowhere again.” she tried to joke.

“You know, I told Alex the exact same thing yesterday.” said Kara.

Lena looked back up and caught Kara’s steady gaze. She tried to stop the flush creeping up her neck to no avail.

“Really?”

Kara chuckled. “Great minds think alike.”

Lena chuckled too. “You know people always forget the other half of that quote.”

“There’s more to it?” said Kara.

“’Great minds think alike, though fools seldom differ’.” quoted Lena. “Ancient Greek proverb.”

Kara laughed again and shook her head. “Well I know you’re no fool, Lena Luthor. But I can’t say the same for myself.”

“Don’t say that.” Lena meant it to be lighthearted but she couldn’t stop her hand from reaching out and grabbing Kara’s arm. “You are incredibly intelligent, Kara. I mean, you were the one who figured out that it was the pool poisoning those kids.”

“Thanks.” Kara flushed, suddenly desperate for a change of subject since the only thing her brain could concentrate on was Lena’s hand. "So how's Boomer?” her voice cracked a little, “Everything still working out with the two of you?"

Lena smiled so wide her dimples showed, only furthering Kara's blush. "It's going great actually. I took him on a walk this morning, well, rather, he took me on a walk. Nothing like a little morning cardio and isometric grip training to start the day."

Kara chuckled warmly. "He really likes walks doesn't he?"

"He also really likes you. I actually think he might like you more than me." said Lena. "After you left yesterday he sat in front of the door and whined for a whole two minutes."

"You're kidding." said Kara.

"I'm serious. Poor thing was heartbroken. I think he thought he might never see you again."

"I guess that just means I'll have to come over more often. Or he could come to my place. Alex wants to meet him." Kara leaned in and stage-whispered. "I think she wants to put his training to the test."

Lena chuckled. "Of course she does. It sounds like I'm going to have to start scheduling play dates already."

Kara couldn't help herself. "Well I'm free Sunday if you want? We could go to the park again."

Lena's heart fluttered. "Sunday it is then."

She let Kara get back to work and went into her office, set on getting some work done after her extended weekend-but her mind apparently had other plans and her desk had the perfect view. There was a half-finished email on her screen while her eyes wandered. Kara was wearing some rather form fitting maroon slacks and a dark blue button down. Lena couldn’t help but watch her walk around the bull pen. The slight sway of her hips, the way the fabric of her pants pulled in all the right places. Not to mention how her sleeves were barely containing her arms. Lena knew genetics. She also knew that it didn’t matter how good they were, no one just has muscles like that. Even roided-out bodybuilders work incredibly hard for every ounce of sculpted muscle. She suspected that while Kara might have been telling the truth that she didn’t have a gym membership—other than the guest pass that she used for spin classes at Lena’s gym—and Lena never saw a single weight in her apartment, she didn’t wonder if Kara had some sort of secret calisthenics program that she ran.

Lena had to mentally shake herself out of her stare and tried somewhat fruitlessly to get back to work. Those were thoughts that friends—and someone who identifies as straight—have…right?

Ugh. Now is definitely not the time to try and unpack that. She filed away those thoughts to be reopened later on when she was at home and not at risk of being discovered.

* * *

Kara’s heart had been beating a million miles an hour ever since Lena woke her up at her desk and it was showing no signs of stopping any time soon. Sleep had robbed her of her higher functioning leaving only bare minimal processing power and instinct. Which is why when she saw Lena in that black and white blouse and black A-line pencil skirt any ability to form coherent thought was momentarily incapacitated. Waking up with Lena in her arms had really done a number on her. Thoughts, specifically those thoughts that she assumed she had packed away for good, came roaring back completely unbidden and very much unwelcome. Her friendship with Lena was already complicated enough with this Supergirl-sized secret between them. But thoughts of this nature? Nope. No. Not gonna happen. Nope. Nada.

Kara glanced in Lena’s office. She was quietly sitting at her desk and studiously working away at something on her computer. Kara’s eyes followed along the sharp angle of her jaw…down her neck…

Whoa there!

Kara mentally slapped herself. Now was neither the time nor the place to be surreptitiously ogling her best friend.

Rao. Was it getting hotter in the office?

She was at war with herself. On one hand she didn’t want to leave because she was still on high alert for any danger that might try and befall Lena. But on the other, she wasn’t sure how much longer she was going to last before she would be found out, especially if James was around. He knew her well enough that he would be suspicious. Granted, he wouldn’t know exactly why he was suspicious, just that Kara wasn’t acting like herself.

Kara mentally shook herself. There were more important things to think about other than whether or not her platonic best friend made her feel a certain way. Like Supergirl important things. The play date with Boomer on Saturday. Then. That would be the perfect time to do it. Lena would be relaxed from playing with Boomer and hanging out all day and would be in the comfort of her own home. That’s when she should do it, that’s when she should tell Lena about Supergirl. Now her heart was hammering for a different reason.

“Kara, we’ve got an armed robbery at National City Bank. NCPD is on scene but there are reports of multiple wounded and hostages.” said Winn suddenly in her ear.

Thank God for criminals.

* * *

Lena had somehow made it through the rest of the day without incident. She had doubled down not only on CatCo stuff but had managed to sneak in some L-Corp as well. Her ability to switch to cold hard logic, no doubt a trait endowed from both Luthor genetics and upbringing, had been her only saving grace. Up went the walls, feelings shoved back into boxes, and nose to the grindstone. But now all that pent-up energy needed to go somewhere and she knew just where: a golden-haired fluffball that was currently dancing back and forth on his front paws. Lena had a little difficulty wrangling Boomer but eventually got his harness on and was out the door. As he dragged her along—although a little bit less so since Lena had enough energy to match his pace—Lena had allowed herself to one by one let things out of their little box. She started from an objective standpoint. Firstly, there was nothing wrong with noting how in shape a friend is, perfectly normal. Staring at their ass…well…

She put that one in the “Questionable” file.

Second. Thinking that an outfit looks really good is completely normal as well. But the fact she had been distracted by…certain aspects of said clothing.

She sighed. Another “Questionable”.

Finally, being excited and very much looking forward to the “play date” on Sunday was also completely normal. The fluttering in her heart?

“Questionable”.

There had to be a better way to go about this. If she kept going at it this way she would loop herself into insanity. She was a scientist, dammit, she could figure this out.

After their extended walk Lena and Boomer returned to her penthouse, but not before Boomer stopped to say hello to the doorman of course. Lena got them both dinner and decided to test things with herself. She pulled up her Netflix account. The arrow of her remote hovered over “LGBTQ” for a moment before she clicked on it. Her eyes scanned the various movies and TV shows. One of the titles stood out. It was one that she had heard about. She took a deep breath and clicked on it.

“I’ve always loved getting clean…”

Okay, not a bad start. Lena could relate to that feeling. This seemed fine—

Her eyes suddenly went wide.

Just like that there were two nude women kissing in the shower. A blonde and a brunette to boot. Lena hit pause and shut her eyes and took a moment to collect herself. She just saw two pairs of breasts. How did it make her feel? She thought a moment.

“Surprise.” she said definitively to the TV. “Very much surprised.”

Boomer gruffed at her and cocked his head to the side.

Lena looked at him. “What? You can’t tell me that seeing two nude women ten seconds into the first episode of a show wouldn’t rattle you a little bit.”

Boomer seemed to ignore her and went back to chewing on his potsticker toy.

“Your indifference is noted.” quipped Lena. A sly smile spread across her face.

“Kara.”

Boomer’s head whipped up and he jumped up from the floor and ran over to the door.

Lena cackled. “Ah ha! Gotcha!”

Boomer didn’t quite get the joke and looked back expectantly at the door as if Kara was about to walk in. Lena sighed.

“I know how you feel.” she patted the spot next to her.

Boomer looked one more time at the door before hopping up next to her and lavishing her with kisses before laying his head down in her lap while she gently scratched his ears. She braced herself and hit play.

Once the episode was over it hadn’t really helped. Yes, her heart had skipped a beat and she had flushed with surprise at the opening scene, but that’s all it was. Just…surprise. She had also remained still as stone when Piper danced for Alex and then the way she sat in her lap. But that was because she wanted to have a completely objective perspective. And as she looked back it really wasn’t doing anything for her. Although, there was something to be said about the way Alex had somewhat ordered Piper around.

And now that’s filed away for later.

When the episode was over it had left her wanting—in a completely scientific way. In the immediate moments after it ended all she could think about was the tampon sandwich and how exactly it came to be. A shudder went down her spine. Menstruation is a totally normal thing and not to be stigmatized but that was just…gross.

Lena rubbed her face, suddenly tired. It was becoming quite apparent that this was going to take a lot longer to figure out than she had originally thought. She opened the balcony door for Boomer and started getting herself ready for bed. Scenes from the episode played over and over again in her mind when one specific one got stuck on replay: Piper telling Larry that her relationship with Alex was just a phase. Maybe that’s what was going on with her, it was just a phase, her possible attraction to Kara would pass. And judging by the way Piper reacted to seeing Alex at the end of the episode Lena figured it was safe to say that the phase was over—Future Lena who had finished the series would later laugh with Future Kara at Past Lena in retrospect.

This whole situation was driving her insane and was already starting to exhaust her. While brushing her teeth, and obsessively ruminating, an idea presented itself. She quickly finished getting ready but stopped when she saw Boomer. She debated with herself. He had been in the crate for most of the day and didn’t deserve it throughout the night as well. Plus, he had proven himself to be a good boy the last two nights. However, she didn’t exactly want him around at the moment. Feeling guilty, she grabbed a small handful of treats in the kitchen and looked the expectant dog in the eye.

“I’m letting you sleep on the couch tonight, alright? That means I’m trusting you to not pee anywhere or chew anything other than your toys. Got it?”

Boomer just smiled as he panted and his tail thumped, his eyes flitting to the treats in her hand.

“If you behave I’ll get you one of those puppuccino things.”

Boomer licked his lips. Lena gave him the treats then retreated into her bedroom and shut the door. Despite the dog being in another room it still felt weird considering what she was about to do. She shut off all of the lights, pulled the curtains, and then crawled into bed and promptly stared at the ceiling. This needed to have as few variables as possible in order to draw proper conclusions or at least a theory so she steered clear of the drawer.

One variable removed.

She closed her eyes and started thinking about the blonde and brunette from the show. They were both beautiful and, objectively speaking, Lena didn’t think she had a type when it came to women since all of this was uncharted territory for her.

Another variable removed.

She let her mind wander and expand upon the bedroom scene. Things slowly progressed, getting hotter and heavier and it left her feeling…

Nothing.

She opened her eyes. Well then that solves it. Two beautiful women getting it on in her mind and it made her feel nothing.

And yet.

And yet it was only one sample. In order to make things more statistically sound she would need a larger sample size and repeat the experiment to see if it would yield the same results.

She closed her eyes and let her mind wander again but didn’t know where to start this time. A sudden squeak from a dog toy in the living room made her jump. Her brain immediately changed gears and started thinking about the play date on Saturday. It was supposed to be warmer, maybe Kara would wear a tank top. Lena knew she should stop herself but since thinking about Alex and Piper didn’t do anything for her that meant she was in the clear. Didn’t it? She decided to play fast and loose with the parameters of her study and let the daydream continue.

Golden hair gathered up in a ponytail, showing off broad shoulders and a toned back through a tank top. Muscles flexing as they played tug of war. A sparkling smile and a sun-filled laugh. Blue eyes gazing at her from behind dark frames. The location suddenly changed from the park to her bedroom. Kara sitting in a plain white tee and pretending to read a book while Lena slowly danced for her, piece by piece of clothing hitting the floor until she was in nothing but a matching set of lacy black lingerie. The book being cast aside as blue eyes darkened.

Lena stopped herself. Nope. No. She couldn’t think about Kara like that. It felt wrong somehow. Like she was doing something without permission. Lena groaned in frustration. She needed a suitable stand-in.

What about…Supergirl? They were somewhat friends but not close, not like she and Kara were. Not to mention Supergirl had quite a physique as well.

Lena closed her eyes again and this time it was Supergirl clad in her cape and suit walking in through her balcony door. Her steely gaze pinning Lena in place. Lena sitting in her chair with her legs crossed in nothing but a robe.

“Stand up.” Supergirl commanded, stern but gentle.

  Lena stood up. Supergirl strode over to her.

“You’ve been waiting for me, haven’t you, Miss Luthor?”

Lena felt a chill go down her spine.

Supergirl pulled at the loose tie on her robe, it readily fell open to reveal the same lingerie. The steely blue gaze turned hungry as Supergirl’s eyes trailed down her body, greedily taking all of Lena’s exposed flesh in.

“Take off your robe.”

Lena did as she was told. Supergirl stepped into her space, her full pink lips mere inches from her own.

“Do I turn you on?” Supergirl purred as her hand roamed up Lena’s collarbones to her neck, her thumb resting on Lena’s chin.

Lena felt her heart rate tick up.

Supergirl leaned in and kissed her. Her lips were so soft but the kiss was firm, bordering on demanding. Lena could feel how much Supergirl was holding back.

Lena started to move her hands under her shirt and stroked her abdomen.

The kissing intensified as Supergirl pulled her close by the waist. Her warm strong hands roamed around her hips before slipping down and palming Lena’s ass. They lingered a moment before moving upwards, undoing her bra clasp. Lena let her bra fall away. Supergirl’s hands moved to her breasts.

Lena’s hands moved to her breasts and found that her nipples were already hard.

Supergirl started kissing lower down Lena’s jaw to her neck. Suddenly, Lena found herself being lifted off of the ground. She wrapped her legs around Supergirl as the hero kissed her senseless and took them both into the bedroom. She quickly laid Lena down on the bed and resumed her trail of kisses lower, lavishing plenty of attention to her chest.

Lena let out a small whimper as she played with her chest.

Supergirl’s kisses trailed even lower.

Lena’s hand moved lower.

Supergirl pulled down her panties with a wicked smile.

Lena’s hand slipped into her sleep shorts. She inhaled through her nose. She was already wet.

Supergirl lowered herself and threw Lena’s legs over her shoulders and leaned in with a ready tongue.

She gasped at the sensation as her fingers slipped around. Supergirl’s tongue relentless. Her toes started to curl as she felt a familiar pressure coil low in her hips. The fantasy didn’t get to continue much further before her mouth fell open in a gasp and an orgasm ripped through her, leaving her a panting mess. She opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling.

Okay, so maybe she was a little heteroflexible.

Chapter Text

The door to her apartment suddenly opened.

“Lena?” Kara was surprised to see her, it wasn’t Sunday.

Lena didn’t say a word as she closed the door. When she turned back around she was suddenly wearing the dress. The black dress that she had worn when they crashed Edge’s party in an attempt to get a confession out of him admitting that he had poisoned Lena—which sadly had failed no thanks to Lillian crashing the party with a swarm of drones. 

Lena stalked over to Kara with purpose.

“Wha-wha-wha-what are you d-do-doing, L-Lena?” stammered Kara nervously as she furiously backpedaled.

Lena didn’t say a word her eyes were blown wide. Kara laughed nervously. She suddenly gasped as her bed hit the back of her legs and she fell backwards. Lena didn’t stop. She crawled on top of Kara, pulling the pins out of her hair and letting her long dark locks tumble over bare shoulders.

“Oh, Rao.” breathed Kara.

Lena smiled wickedly as she leaned down and kissed her. Kara couldn’t help the small moan that escaped as she felt her tongue lick at her lips.

Her eyes fluttered.

When she opened them their position had reversed and all Kara could see was soft pale skin. Lena’s lips were parted in small gasps and her green eyes were transfixed on Kara’s. Kara felt all the breath leave her lungs, Lena was so beautiful. Kara couldn’t help herself and felt her hips rock forward. Lena’s mouth opened further and the sounds that she made were positively sinful. Kara wanted nothing more than to keep hearing those sounds. So she kept up the pace with her hips. It didn’t take long before she could feel the fire burning within her belly and spreading out through her body.

Kara was slowly becoming aware that her hips were actually moving.

Lena’s legs wrapped around her and blunt nails dragged down her back. Kara picked up the pace.

She was definitely moving.

Lena’s back arched off of the bed.

Kara was only half-aware that she had been dreaming as the strength of her orgasm knocked her out of her dream. It took her a solid minute to get her bearings as she looked around her room. Her heart was thrumming in her chest. She was laying on her stomach and very much in the position she had just dreamt about. And…yep, her boxers weren’t exactly dry as she could feel the slickness between her legs. With a loud groan she flipped over on her back.

“Oh, come on!” she yelled at the ceiling. “Really? Really!?”

She was mad at herself. Mad that somehow those feelings had surfaced and had the audacity to make her have a dream like that. And mad that she like it, maybe a little too much. And that wasn’t the orgasm talking. It wasn’t the first time her mind had wandered into less-than-wholesome territory, but it was the first time that it had be so brazen and blatant. Her previous thoughts had never been allowed to go past a first kiss, maybe two.

This really, truly was the last thing she needed right now. As if Saturday wasn’t going to difficult enough now she will have to reveal herself as Supergirl while trying to not picture her best friend like that.

“Oh God.” Kara turned deep crimson and covered her face.

She was inevitably going to see Lena before Sunday, she was her boss for fuck’s sake. Kara rubbed her face. She was going to need an excuse to be out of the office all week. There had been several ideas that she had been working on for possible new articles but nothing that would outright require her to be out there pounding the pavement.

She slammed her fists down on the bed.

But that would mean leaving Lena vulnerable to attack again and that just wouldn’t do. She threw off her covers and started getting ready for the day. The potential embarrassment that seeing Lena could cause in no way outweighed her safety so Kara would just have to suck it up and try to bury everything again. If the thoughts came up she would acknowledge them but then not give them any more attention in hopes that they would eventually stop.

When she was finally ready she stood at her door a moment just staring at the handle. Eventually, she took a deep breath and went out into the world, praying that her mind would behave itself.

* * *

Lena rubbed her eyes. The energy she had yesterday was completely gone. What should have been a night of peaceful sleep induced by a shockingly powerful orgasm had instead turned into a night of self-reflection. She started from her earliest memories and slowly worked her way forward. Every single female friend or acquaintance she had ever had. Any woman that she had ever considered beautiful or attractive. Questioning the motives behind all of her female friendships. Scouring every nook and cranny for something, anything that would prove to her that the feelings like what Supergirl had induced, and her feelings for Kara, weren’t the first times she had them. And after spending nearly the entire night picking everything apart and analyzing the pieces six ways from Sunday…the results had been inconclusive. There was a slight possibility with one of her school friends, Andrea, but there were too many variables from their falling out that she couldn’t discern things as well as she would have liked. It would really help if she could talk to someone about this, or at least someone who was actually gay to tell her about their own experience, shedding some light on her own in the process. But she had no one like that to talk to. The only possibility—which was actually very much not a viable possibility—was Alex. And though she didn’t know the elder Danvers near as well as she knew Kara, she knew well-enough that despite her best efforts Alex would most likely end up spilling the beans to Kara. Which is why at three in the morning she was watching coming out stories on YouTube. Unfortunately, despite the abundance, there wasn’t one that she could relate to. Yes, there had been stories about falling in love with their best friend, but it was always the life retrospect that revealed that there had been hints presenting themselves, and with hers bearing no fruit that left her just as confused as she was before. However, she did have some clarity on the fact that no, straight friends don’t think about their friends in that way, so most likely she wasn’t a hundred percent straight. There had even been a point where she had seriously considered looking up something a bit more…spicy. But logic told her that if it hadn’t worked previously thinking about those two attractive characters, then that would probably just be another dead end.

Unfortunately, her brain seemed to have forgotten that in its exhausted state and somehow she found herself reading through a rather detailed piece of fiction that a fan had written about said characters. Last night might have been a failure but Lena suddenly found herself hot and bothered during lunch.

Another one for the “Maybe Not Straight/Questionable” file.

Her phone chimed with a text and snapped her out of her “possibly gay”-induced stupor. She smiled at the screen. The new dog walker, Sarah, sent her a picture of Boomer straining at his harness and leading the pack, naturally. Lena found herself missing his big dopey smile and calming presence. He would also make a great distraction. Lena bit her lip in consideration. She was crazy for even thinking it in the first place. Totally unbecoming of a Luthor. Lillian would have a heart attack at the thought alone. Lena quickly typed out a text to Sarah and hit send. About an hour later she could hear the clacking of nails one the floor and the delighted gasps of her employees.

“Boomer! Hey, buddy! Whoa, easy there, you’re getting tangled.”

And there’s Kara. Lena didn’t even have to see her to know that the dog was trying to weave through her legs.

“Oh my gosh, I missed you too!” she was already on Boomer’s level and getting a face full of enthusiastic kisses.

Lena laughed warmly at the scene. Sarah was laughing too.

“You should have seen him on his walk today.” she said.

“Let me guess, he dragged you the whole way.” chuckled Kara as she scratched Boomer’s ears.

“Yep. The whole way. Two freaking miles.” said Sarah dramatically. “I’ve never had a dog do that.”

“He’s certainly energetic.” said Lena.

Sarah smiled brightly at her. “Miss Luthor! We had such a blast today.”

“I saw.” said Lena. “Thank you for bringing him by for a little bit. I might be working a little later tonight so I wanted to see him and give him a little extra free time from his crate.”

Boomer turned to her with a big smile and a wildly wagging tail. Lena bent over and allowed a kiss or two while petting him. Almost instantly she felt herself relax. She had read scientific studies about how pets lower stress and blood pressure, but it was another thing entirely to experience it firsthand. Lena looked around at the mixed faces of astonishment and smiles from her employees. Apparently it wasn’t a complete shock to know that Lena Luthor not only liked animals but actually owned a dog. Boomer looked back at Kara as if he was expecting to play. Lena’s smile only grew as did the warm fuzzy feeling in her chest. Seeing both Kara and Boomer so happy made her genuinely happy too. And after everything she had been through the last month, with the poisoning and the plane, it was a welcome feeling.

* * *

Boomer and Sarah ended up staying for nearly forty-five minutes while the panting and smiling goofball and his wild wagging tail made their rounds through the office. Lena felt herself fall back into her friendship with Kara with ease. Boomer had put her in such a good mood that she had managed to forget her currently dilemma for the rest of the day. She put the whole situation out of her mind and the rest of the week had gone by without incident. It was to the point that she found herself looking forward to Sunday to just have fun hanging with Kara and Boomer with no pressure. Kara didn’t know about her confusing feelings and what all had transpired that fateful night, so it wasn’t like Lena really had anything to be embarrassed about. Kara was still Kara, and as far as she was concerned Lena was still Lena. But if she happened to make sure that she was looking her best that didn’t mean anything, it’s not like she was actively trying to get a reaction from Kara, nope, Lena was allowed to want to look good without having any ulterior motives. Not that she expected a reaction anyways, it’s not like Kara was struggling with the same confusion that she was. Lena knew she shouldn’t assume but, honestly, Kara had never given any reason to think that she was anything other than straight herself. A knock at her door made her heart skip.

“Hey!” smiled an overly cheerful Kara. “Ready for Lena, Boomer and Kara’s Day of Fun?”

For the briefest of moments Lena figured that there was some sort of pop culture reference in the greeting but let it go.

“Yes we are!” she smiled back.

Boomer answered for himself by nearly knocking Lena out of the way to get to Kara. He did his little leg-weaving thing before finally stopping and getting head scratches.

“You ready to go to the park?” asked Lena.

“No, actually, I have a better idea.” smiled Kara.

* * *

Kara had decided early on that Sunday would be the most fun Lena’s had in a while, and Boomer too. It needed to be the perfect day so that when Kara shattered her world later, and possibly forever destroying Lena’s hard-earned trust, it might not actually be the end of the world. After everything Lena had been through in her life with the Luthors, Kara knew just how delicate and precious of a thing that truth was with Lena.  Lex using her, Lillian manipulating her, it was honestly a surprise that Lena had even allowed them to become friends was nothing short of a miracle. Kara had seen how Lena had shut down and how her walls went up when Lillian got involved last year with the whole Cadmus thing. Supergirl had a hard enough time just trying to set aside her hatred for the Luthor matriarch to save Lena and Mon-el, she couldn’t even begin to imagine what life growing up with the woman had been like.

It had taken her just a few minutes to get ready and with her nervous and slightly anxious energy building she had decided to walk to Lena’s. It would give her a chance to calm down a little bit. Or at least that’s what she had thought. By the time she got to Lena’s door she was practically vibrating with nervous energy, which translated into her being a tad over-enthusiastic. Thankfully, Lena hadn’t seemed to notice and they were soon on their way.

“So where are we going?” asked Lena.

“This really cool dog park place I found online.” replied Kara. “There’s a doggy daycare that’s attached to it but you can still pay for like a Day Pass to hang out with your dog. There’s like this playground obstacle course thing and a pool and he can play with other dogs too.”

“So an amusement park for dogs?” Lena laughed.

Kara chuckled. “Kinda.”

“Well that sounds oddly perfect for the both of you.” Lena shot her a look. “Since you both seem to always have plenty of energy. Especially on a sunny day like today.

You don’t know the half of it. Kara thought. Yet.

Kara blushed, and Lena actually noticed, and fidgeted with her glasses.

* * *

Kara was a genius. Yes, Lena knew Kara was highly intelligent, but she really hit it out of the park, so to speak. When they finally got to the park poor Boomer didn’t know where to start. There were so many other dogs and so many different things to try that he just danced in place while his head comically whipped around. Kara had taken the lead and decided to see how much of his training had stuck and took him straight to the obstacle course. Boomer’s tongue flapped in the breeze as he ran around jumping through literal hoops, zooming through tunnels, balancing on a teeter-totter, and running up ramps. Lena was seriously impressed with his skills and even took a few videos. Kara did as well, no doubt sending them to Alex to prove Boomer’s skill. Eventually, even though Kara looked like she could keep going, Boomer had finally had enough and came and sat down in the shade by Lena. She had already filled up his water dish. He greedily drank it all down and then gave her an extra wet kiss. When he caught his breath Kara led them over to the pool. It was six inches deep at the shallow end and three feet at the deepest. Lena couldn’t help but giggle at a toy poodle that was neck deep in the shallow end. Boomer had sniffed at the water before walking around the shallow end. He played a little bit with a couple of labs before following after them and jumping in the deep end for a proper swim.

“He’s so happy.” smiled Kara as she sat down next to Lena.

Lena felt their thighs brush slightly and was suddenly grateful for her already pinked skin.

“This was the perfect idea, Kara. Although I fear we may never get him to leave.” smiled Lena.

Kara laughed. “Don’t worry, if I have to carry him I will.”

Lena shook her head and chuckled. “God, the way we talk about him you’d think that he was a toddler and not a three-year-old dog.”

Kara barked a laugh. “It does kinda feel like that at times.”

“Well, I mean you really did plan this play date especially for him.”

“That I did.” Kara looked over at her. “So how are you doing? Are the nightmares back?”

“No, em, I actually haven’t had one since before last Saturday.” Lena thought out loud.

She had something else plaguing her sleep.

“Good.” said Kara.

“And I guess I’m doing about as well to be expected with two attempts on my life in the span of a month.” Lena turned to her. “I’ve been meaning to ask, could you get in contact with Supergirl for me? I haven’t seen her since the plane and I…well, I just want to tell her thank you.”

“Uh, yeah.” Kara cleared her throat. “Yes. I could…I could do that. She, um, she kinda had a hard time with what happen too.”

“Really?” Lena quirked a brow.

“Yeah. It’s just…she knows how much you mean to me. And she sort of thinks of you as a friend too. I think it scared her more than she knows.” admitted Kara.

“Supergirl was scared for me?” Lena tilted her head. “I had no idea that we were even that close. I mean, I guess I kind of consider her a friend as well. It’s hard not to after everything she has done for me and the sheer number of times she has saved my life. Cyborg Superman, the balcony, the plane. It’s like she’s my personal superhero.”

Kara was oddly silent at that. She looked out at Boomer.

“Yeah.” she said softly.

“Are you okay?”

“I—” Kara cut herself off. She turned to Lena and patted her thigh. “I’m okay.” She looked back over at Boomer. “Think he’s ready to leave yet? It’s almost lunch time and we still have one more place to go.”

Lena followed her gaze. “I think you might have to physically remove him from the pool.”

Surprisingly, Boomer listened when Lena called him. He came over and promptly shook off half of the pool water all over Kara and Lena as they yelped.

“Boomer no!” hollered Lena.

Kara just laughed. They used a towel that was offered by the park and got him as dry as they could before heading off to their next destination. That place just so happened to be National City’s only dog-friendly bakery. Kara purchased half a dozen rather large dog cookies in the shape of bones and even had Boomer’s name written on them. Naturally, there had to be an on-site taste test just to make sure. Lena half panicked for a moment at the near-manic speed with which he devoured his treat.

“I think he eats faster than me.” joked Kara.

“Possibly.” agreed Lena. “But I’m sure pound for pound you can still eat more than him.”

Kara gasped in feigned surprise.

“Oh, please.” Lena put her hand on her hip. “I’ve seen you eat more potstickers than what should be humanly possible.”

“’Cause they’re amazing, Lena!” Kara tried to defend herself. “You can’t just eat one.”

After the bakery Lena had insisted on paying for lunch so they went to Noonan’s so Kara could replenish her energy stores with an ungodly amount of sugary sticky buns. And afterwards they went back to Lena’s place.

Kara had meant to tell Lena, really, she did, but it never seemed like it was the right time. Every time she saw that dimple smile or those bright green eyes and how happy and relaxed Lena was, she just couldn’t do it, she couldn’t destroy that happiness. She had cursed herself so many times throughout that wonderful day that she didn’t just tell Lena from the start who she was, or at least once it was confirmed that she wasn’t like her family. Once again Winn and James knew straight away, and neither one of them had been put in any more danger than what Lena had faced even without knowing her secret. She needed to tell her. Now. Because the longer she went without telling the truth the more it would hurt Lena once it finally came out. Kara didn’t even want to think about what would happen if she let a few more years pass by before Lena ultimately found out. No matter how much Kara believed in Lena, she knew that there was always a chance that Lena wouldn’t believe in herself and would potentially revert back to the Luthor ways. It honestly sent a chill down her spine to think of Lena being anything remotely like Lillian or, Rao forbid, Lex. Which is now why she was standing at Lena’s door at ten at night silently cursing herself for being a coward. Boomer had given her goodbye kisses and she had hugged Lena tight before saying goodnight. And as Lena’s door shut behind her she hung her head and mentally berated herself. In her distraction she trudged over to the elevator. Just as she was about to hit the button she heard it. A loud bark and the unmistakable sound of a large caliber round burying itself in bulletproof glass.

Chapter Text

A warm breeze blew in through the open balcony door that Boomer had just come in from. Lena had hardly shut the door and Boomer was already whining at Kara’s absence.

“Me too, buddy.” she said sympathetically.

Lena had done the dangerous thing and let her mind wander. Kara had looked so good in those shorts. And that tank top—

Boomer interrupted her thoughts as he started barking madly at her. She looked down at him questioningly.

“Boomer, what—”

It all happened so fast.

She saw the red dot on her chest and immediately dove to the ground as several rounds one by one hit the bullet proof glass of her windows. She got up to run when a spray of bullets shot through the open balcony door, hitting the floor, breakfast bar, wall, and ceiling. Her world was suddenly turned on its axis in a blur of blue and red. Lena shut her eyes tight against the sounds of the bullets being stopped by a body made of steel, falling harmlessly to the ground. After what felt like an eternity the sounds stopped she felt a whoosh and opened her eyes to see a blur blast off through the open balcony door and straight towards the top of a building. Lena didn’t even take time to think. She found Boomer cowering in a corner and practically dragged him into her bathroom and shut the door. She dropped to the ground and pulled him close and held on tightly as she stroked him.

“It’s okay, it’s okay. Supergirl will stop the bad men.” she tried to soothe, both herself and Boomer. “She’ll keep us safe.”

Her eyes suddenly went wide.

Kara!

Was she okay? Surely she had heard all of that. Forgoing her own safety Lena threw open the door to the bathroom, then shut Boomer in, before daring to run back to the door. No more shots rang out so she figured Supergirl had got her man. She threw open the door and found nothing out of place and Kara nowhere to be seen. She slammed her door shut, locking it, then scrambled to find her phone. It was on the kitchen counter and covered in drywall dust. Boomer started barking like mad. Her hands shook as she pulled up Kara and hit call. The phone rang and rang.

“Come on, Kara. Pick up. Please pick up.” rushed Lena anxiously.

“Hey, this is Kara Danvers. Sorry I—“

Lena didn’t even let the automated message finish before hanging up and rushing to text her, making enough typos to make it only just legible.

“Miss Luthor, are you alright?”

Lena jumped and whirled around as Supergirl came inside.

“Supergirl! Thank god!” she put a hand over her hammering heart. “Who was that? Did you get them?”

Supergirl nodded curtly. Lena could see the barely restrained fury in her eyes.

“They’ve been taken care of. It would seem that they had been camped out all day waiting for you. They had quite the arsenal so something tells me that their orders were to take you out by any means necessary.” said Supergirl, her jaw clenching and unclenching. “I took them to Agent Danvers, she’ll know what to do with them.” she looked Lena over again. “Are you okay?”

Lena huffed a sarcastic laugh. “I’m not injured if that’s what you mean. Psychologically…well…” she looked at Supergirl. “How would you feel if there’s been three blatant attempts on your life in under two months? As a Luthor I’d say it is par for the course but then again that’s not why Edge is targeting me now is it?”

“We will get him, Miss Luthor.” said Supergirl. “Agent Danvers is confident that she can get the information that we need to put Edge away for good.”

Lena nodded. Boomer suddenly started barking again. Supergirl quirked a brow.

“You have a dog?”

“Yes.” said Lena as she hurried to let him out.

“When did you—” Supergirl was cut off as the golden ball of fur came running out of the bathroom and into the living room, making a beeline straight for her.

“Oh, wow. You’re very friendly. Are you okay too?” Supergirl said sweetly as she tried to pet him.

She smiled as he looked up at her with that dopey smile. After petting him a minute she straightened and looked over at Lena. Lena was frozen on the spot. Her eyes were wide with shock and disbelief.

“Miss Luthor? Are you sure you’re alright?” said Supergirl.

Lena couldn’t believe what had just happened. Boomer had weaved around and through Supergirl’s legs and then sat and looked up at her. He never did that with anyone else except Kara. Lena’s mind went blank as she looked between Supergirl and Boomer. It all started to horribly fall into place. Supergirl’s bright smile with Boomer, the way she smooshed his face. The hair, the eyes, the warmth…

“Kara?” Lena’s voice cracked.

Supergirl froze. Lena somehow started to walk towards her. Supergirl suddenly found herself face to face with Lena, green eyes desperately searching blue.

“Hi, Lena.” the words are barely above a whisper.

Lena couldn’t believe it. Kara was Supergirl. Her mind was reeling. How had she been fooled by a pair of glasses? She felt Boomer sit on her feet. Kara was Supergirl and it took Boomer all of five seconds to figure it out, something that she, a super genius, had not.

“How?” Lena rasped.

“Lena, I’m so sorry.” Kara held her gaze. “I’ve been trying to figure out how to tell you—”

“You’ve been lying to me this entire time.” said Lena softly as tears filled her eyes.

“Yes, but I was going to tell you. Today, actually. But then…but then you were so happy after the day we had and I just couldn’t…I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t take away that happiness. I was a coward and I know it. But you see I was scared.” tears started welling up in her eyes. “I was scared of losing you. I know how much trust means to you. I knew that if I didn’t do this right that I could end up losing you for forever.”

Lena just stood silently while tears started to stream down her face.

“I also struggled with telling you because I was being selfish. You are the only person in my life that saw me as Kara, just Kara, not Supergirl. And I didn’t want to give that up.” Kara shook her head and took a deep breath as she squeezed her eyes shut and tears fell. “I also didn’t tell you because I thought that it would keep you safe. If anyone found out that you knew who I was that would put you in so much danger. But then I started thinking about how Winn and James know and nothing has really changed for them.”

“Winn and James know? What, is this some club where all our friends know except me and you all have a laugh over it?” bit Lena, she couldn’t help herself, she felt wounded and venomous.

“No! No! We never did anything like that!” exclaimed Kara. “Never. Please, Lena, I never meant to hurt you. But even without you knowing I was already doing everything I could to keep you safe. When you were poisoned I even risked my identity by flying you to the DEO.”

“The DEO?”

“The Department of Extranormal Operations. It’s who I work with. Alex and Winn both work for them. They are the ones that deal with all of the aliens and any other related issues.”

Lena laughed sardonically. “So not only is my best friend Supergirl, but her sister and our friend work for a clandestine organization while masquerading as FBI. An organization that no doubt has been keeping tabs on me and my family for god knows how long.”

“No! Lena we never—”

“Oh save it!” spat Lena. “Your cousin and my brother have had more than their fair share of run-ins and grudges. I highly doubt that Superman’s cousin wouldn’t keep tabs on the family of the man hell-bent on destroying him.”

“No! Please! Lena! I’m sorry! I would never do that! It’s because of me that the DEO took you off their radar. Even after Lillian and Cadmus. Please. I just wanted to keep you safe.”

Lena’s mind was reeling. Every fiber of her being was screaming for her to put up her walls and never let a single soul through them ever again. To hurt Kara as much as she hurt her. More tears welled up in her eyes.

“I don’t blame you for reacting like this.” Kara said softly. “But please…don’t push me away. I don’t think—I can’t—please. Please, Lena. You’re my best friend.” tears streamed down her face. “I can’t lose you.” she whispered. “Please. I’m not asking you to forgive me. Just don’t push me away…”

Lena swallowed hard and clenched her jaw. “I think I need to be alone now. Please leave.”

“Lena…”

“Please.” Lena turned away.

Kara took in a shaky breath and wiped her eyes and nodded before slowly and quietly flying away.

Lena felt like all of the strength had been sapped from her body as she legs gave out from the incredible emotional weight. She collapsed in a heap on the floor as her body shook with heavy sobs. Boomer quietly padded over. He nosed under her arms and wormed his way under them and curled into her body before resting his head on his paws. Lena pulled him close and buried her face in his soft, warm hair. The tears stung her eyes and wouldn’t stop as the breath was knocked from her lungs. Her best friend had been lying to her for over a year. Lena wanted to hate her because hating Kara would make it so much easier. Her walls would still be intact and once again be able to protect her. The hate would numb the pain. It would keep her shattered heart beating. Most of all the hate would allow her to turn a blind eye to the truth of why Kara’s betrayal had cut so deep. Why it physically hurt her to the point of inconsolability. But as much as she wanted to hate Kara, she couldn’t. She couldn’t because in that moment Kara’s secret had been revealed everything that she had put away in those little boxes had come rushing to the surface, revealing her own that she didn’t even know she had.

She couldn’t hate Kara…

…because she was in love with her.

* * *

Kara didn’t know where to go or what to do. By now the two goons she had knocked out were awake and Alex would be interrogating them thoroughly. So talking to her wasn’t an option right now and she really didn’t want to talk to anyone else. A volatile mix of anger and hurt churned in her stomach and her heart. The rage she felt towards the men—and by proxy Edge—that had just tried to kill Lena was still there. It had taken all her restraint to not outright kill them then and there. The way Lena had looked so small and scared underneath her while she shielded her from the bullets was seared into her mind. They assassins were located about a quarter mile away on another rooftop. She had taken a moment to revel in the looks of sheer surprise that she was there. In a show of strength she crushed their guns with her bare hands before grabbing them by their jackets and slamming them together, knocking them out cold. She knew she should have taken them to NCPD or to the actual FBI but the only thought in her mind was making sure that Lena was okay. So she tossed them at Alex’s feet at the DEO and told her that they tried to kill Lena and then blasted off for Lena’s penthouse, consumed with worry and fear. The relief that had washed over her the moment she saw Lena and Boomer were unharmed was almost overwhelming.

Kara landed in her dark apartment and didn’t even bother to turn on the lights. She fell to her knees on the floor, holding herself as all of the tears she had been holding back broke the dam and flooded out. Sobs shook her body as she didn’t hold anything back. It was all too much. Lena had almost died yet again. She had almost lost her again. And now her best friend might very well hate her.

Kara didn’t hate Lena. She didn’t blame her for the way that she had reacted. But the whole situation had been confusing. How had she figured it out? Had she been looking through the peep hole or something? Or had she just finally put two and two together and came to the conclusion on her own? Whatever. It didn’t matter now. Lena knew and it had destroyed her. Kara couldn’t bear the look on Lena’s face. The utter betrayal. She had looked devastated, heartbroken.

The tears just wouldn’t stop.

Kara had spent hours thinking about what Lena’s reaction would be to her Supergirl secret, but she had never even thought to consider her own to Lena’s.

It hurt. It felt like her insides were being ripped out.

Kara cried until there was finally nothing left before crawling into her bed, not even bothering to change out of her suit. She hugged a pillow close to her chest and almost immediately fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

* * *

Kara had taken a sick day. Technically it wasn’t a lie it just wasn’t a physical sickness she was suffering from, it was heartsickness. She had spent the first half an hour of the day in bed staring at her phone. Specifically at the one missed call and text from Lena last night, no doubt sent after Supergirl had dealt with the assassins.

kara plese cl me!  ar you oky?

The fact that Lena had been so shaken up that she couldn’t properly type out a text spoke volumes.

Kara had barely managed to call Alex to see if she could come over. It had taken a couple of hours but sooner enough Alex had let herself in. She was carrying two pizzas, a box of strawberry iced donuts, and a tub of Chunky Monkey ice cream.

“Kara?” she called out.

Kara managed to drag herself out of bed. She was still in her pajamas and without her glasses. Alex could see the bags under her eyes and the weariness in her steps.

“God, Kara, you look awful. What happened? Did you tell Lena?” said Alex as she set down the food. “You didn’t sound like yourself when you called.” she gestured to the food. “So I figured I better bring reinforcements.”

Kara tugged her sleeves down around her hands. “Thanks, Alex, but I don’t have much of an appetite right now.”

Alex’s eyes were suddenly filled with worry. “You’re never not hungry. What happened, Kara?”

Kara’s lip trembled as she looked everywhere but in Alex’s eyes as tears filled her own.

“I’ve ruined everything.

The first tears had barely fallen before Alex had her in a bear hug. Kara broke and sobbed into her shoulder as Alex did her best to hold her upright. They stood like that for a bit while Kara cried it out until she was finally able to talk. Alex led them over to the couch and sat down and waited patiently for Kara to start talking.

Kara took a deep breath. “It all happened so fast. We had just spent the whole day together with Boomer and I had every intention of telling her about Supergirl.” She shook her head. “But I couldn’t do it, Alex. Lena was so happy. And I couldn’t tell her. I didn’t want to potentially ruin a perfect day.” she wiped her eyes. “The moment I left she was attacked. I don’t know how much more of this I can take, Alex. The constant threat of losing Lena forever…I just can’t. When I came back to check on her she had somehow figured it out on her own. She knew I was Supergirl.”

“Do you think she knew before the attack?” asked Alex genuinely.

“No.” Kara vehemently shook her head. “She was so surprised. In shock, really. It was like she had figured it out in exactly that moment. It doesn’t matter how she figured it out though. She found out before I had a chance to tell her and…and it ruined everything. She accused me of using the DEO to spy on her because she’s Lex’s sister, a Luthor.”

“Wait.” interrupted Alex. “You told her about the DEO too?”

“How could I not?” Kara looked at her seriously. “Alex, I’m never going to keep anything from Lena ever again. I told her everything. About you. About Winn and James. Alex, she is so so hurt.”

“Have you guys talked?”

“No. I think she hates me. She told me to leave last night and that she wanted to be alone. I want to give her some space but…I can’t lose her. She’s my best friend.” the last part came out in a broken whisper. “Why does it hurt so much?”

She started to cry again and Alex pulled her into another hug. She rubbed her back as more sobs shook her body. Alex had had a hunch for a little while as to why Kara had been acting the way she had. The way Kara had been almost obsessing over Lena’s safety. Hardly ever spending a moment apart after the plane. And when she had told her about how she had almost killed Edge that same night…

Alex took the plunge.

“It’s hard when we aren’t able to keep the ones we love safe.”

Kara let go and wiped her tears. “God. Is this how you felt when I first became Supergirl?”

“Something to that effect.” admitted Alex. “But Kara…” she took a deep breath. “Do you think it’s possible that you’re feeling this way because Lena is more than just a friend?”

Kara was silent as she waited for Alex to continue.

“You remember what I told you about Vicky, right?” Alex started.

Kara nodded.

Alex tried to be as gentle as possible. “Is it possible that the reason why this is affecting you so much is because you don’t just love Lena but you’re in love with her?”

Kara didn’t say a word and just looked at her sister with pleading eyes. She hadn’t wanted to admit it to herself but Alex had just put a giant spotlight on it and now there was no turning back.

“What do I do, Alex?” her voice cracked. “I have all of these…feelings and I don’t know what to do with them. I’ve already probably messed things up forever between us. Adding this—” she shook her head. “I can’t do it. I’d rather have her upset or even hating me for a while, but I can’t risk letting her know how I feel and then permanently ruining things between us.”

Alex furrowed her brow. “How do you know that she doesn’t feel the same way about you?”

Kara shook her head. “I don’t think she does. I know that just because she’s never been with a woman or said anything about being attracted to them doesn’t mean that it’s not there, but I mean I didn’t even think it was there for me.”

“Oh, come on.” Alex half-laughed. “Okay, you are just full on lying to yourself Kara.”

“I am not.” said Kara bordering on indignant.

“Oh please. I remember how you were with Lucy. ‘She’s gorgeous, she’s smart, smells nice. Hell, I want to date her.”

Kara scoffed as her own words were used against her.

“That is not what I meant! I was jealous of her and James!”

“Fine, I’ll give you that.” relented Alex.

“But you’re not totally wrong.” admitted Kara. “When you came out to me, I don’t know. I guess it might’ve actually hit a little too close to home? Clark did tell me that after we talked with Lena once our article had been published that I had looked ‘gobsmacked’ when she thought I was a reporter. At the time I thought it was only because she had been that impressed by the article and because the thought of being a reporter had seemed like the right choice. Hell, I went straight to Ms. Grant’s office and told her that I wanted to be a reporter because of it.”

She searched Alex’s eyes. “So what do I do? How do I heal this thing between us? It was hard enough trying to figure out how to tell her the whole Supergirl of it all. I almost drove myself insane. How do I tell her that I love her as more than a friend? Do I even tell her?”

Alex’s shoulders slumped. “I wish I could tell you, Kara, but I don’t know. You just have to give Lena the space she needs. If you try and force things before she’s ready it’ll only do more damage.”

Kara nodded. “Thanks, Alex. I love you.”

She hugged her sister.

“I love you too.” Alex hugged her back.

* * *

Lena had cried herself to sleep and Boomer refused to leave her side. She had barely managed to get out of bed and take him on a walk. She tried to clear her head but found herself shoving everything back down just so that she wouldn’t cry in public. She had made it a grand total of three steps back into the penthouse before the unshed tears caught up with her and she broke again. There was no way in hell she was going into work after last night so first thing in the morning she texted James to tell him that she was needed at L-Corp for some important meetings. Next was Sam, who wasn’t buying her email and had called her directly. Lena hadn’t even gotten out a “hello” before crying into her phone. Sam had an incredibly busy day but had promised that as soon as she was done with work she was coming over. Lena didn’t even put up a fight. She had drifted in and out of sleep most of the day. Boomer would occasionally sleep with her but he would still go out on the balcony or play with his toys. Lena had cancelled Sarah for the day and fed Boomer some extra food and treats to make up for everything he had gone through last night because of her. The only other times she emerged from her bedroom was to let in the contractors and then check on their work when they were done. All in all it only took them a few hours to patch the holes. Her bullet-proof windows were scheduled to be replaced tomorrow since it would take a lot longer to do so. So while most of the scars from last night were covered up, Lena found herself staring at all of the still-damaged glass. Once again she had come so close to death and once again Supergirl had saved her. No, not Supergirl, Kara. Kara, her best friend. Kara, her best friend that had lied to her. Kara, her best friend that she had fallen in love with.

There was no denying it. Kara’s betrayal had hurt like nothing before. She had spent all morning thinking about what Kara had said about wanting to keep her safe and knew that she kept the truth from her because she really did want to keep her safe. It made sense. Honestly, everything that Kara had said had made sense. But because her heart had been shattered in that moment she did the only thing she knew, and that was to lash out in hurt like a Luthor. Her mind had gone back and replayed every single interaction she had had with Supergirl and it all made sense how it was Kara all along. Part of her suspected that she might have thought about it before but just didn’t want to see it. She didn’t want to see it because of the reputation that Luthors and Supers had, even though Supergirl hadn’t given her any reason to think that the feud between Superman and Lex had anything to do with them. And the way that Kara had constantly reassured her that she wasn’t her family…it was all a little much. So now here she was laying in bed waiting for Sam to come over. Her heart shattered and aching, and guilt slowly seeping into her bones. Guilt for the way she spoke to Kara. Guilt for sending her away.

As it got closer to the time when Sam would arrive she had at least taken a shower and sat on her couch quietly waiting while Boomer played with his pizza toy. There was finally a knock on her door.

“Hey.” Lena said softly when she opened the door.

“Oh, sweetie.” Sam frowned sympathetically. “You don’t look so good. I know that last night must’ve been a shock. Another attempt on your life? In your home no less.”

Same came in a gave her a one-armed hug as she was holding a bag in her other hand.

“It was bad but it was no chemical-laden plane plummeting out of the sky.” Lena said mirthlessly.

“Oh my gosh!” gasped Sam as she saw the windows. “Seriously! How are you doing? How’s Boomer doing? Poor thing must’ve been terrified.”

“He’s surprisingly resilient. Actually, he’s the only reason I made it out of bed today.” said Lena.

Sam started getting the food out. “Does that mean you haven’t eaten all day?”

Lena shook her head.

“Lena.” Sam admonished gently. “Well, it’s a good thing I brought dinner.”

“What about Ruby?”

Sam waved her off. “Oh, she’s at a friend’s house. They’ve been working on a school project for nearly two weeks now. Some sort of big ancient history diorama or something. You’ve got all my attention until…” she glanced at her watch and thought a moment. “Nine o’clock.”

Lena reluctantly got out plates and flatware and they settled at her seldom-used table—usually her and Kara would either eat at the breakfast bar or at the couch or on the floor with the coffee table.

“Okay,” Sam said around a bite of dinner. “I know that all of this Edge stuff has been getting to you, and rightfully so, but I sense that there’s something else going on. I’ve never known Lena Luthor to hide when rubbing her enemy’s nose in their own failure is always an option.”

Lena picked at her food as she stared at it. She spoke in a low voice. “Sam, what I’m about to tell you cannot go beyond these walls. Got it? It would put so many peoples’ lives at risk.”

“I promise I won’t say a thing.” swore Sam. “You know I’ve got your back, right?”

Lena nodded. She took a breath and looked at Sam.

“Kara is Supergirl.”

“Wow.” Sam’s eyes went wide and she put down her fork. “I did not see that one coming.”

“Neither did I.” Lena said sardonically.

“How did you find out? Did she tell you?”

“That’s the thing. She didn’t.”  she looked over Sam’s shoulder at Boomer eating his dinner. “He did.”

Sam’s head whipped back to look at the dog. “Boomer? How in the world?”

“When Supergirl had taken care of the assassins she came back to check on me.” said Lena. “Boomer ran straight over to her and started doing this thing where he would weave through her legs and then just sit there. I had never seen him do that with anyone else before except one person.”

“Kara.” finished Sam.

“Yep.” nodded Lena. “Then it all hit me so fast. Suddenly, it was like I was really seeing Kara for the first time. I couldn’t believe how I had been fooled by a pair of glasses.”

“Don’t blame yourself. We all were.” Sam said pointedly. She sighed. “But I can see why it was such a big deal for you to find this out. I know how hard trust is for you.”

Lena couldn’t help the tears that started to form. “Thank you. But, em, there’s…there’s more.” her jaw moved but no words came out. She shook her head and buried her face in her hands as the tears broke free. Sam rushed over to her and hugged her as Lena stood up.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay.” she soothed. “It’s okay, sweetie. Take your time.”

“I think—” Lena cut herself off.

She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t say those words out loud. She hadn’t even said them out loud to herself.

“It’s okay.” Sam continued to soothe. “You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”

No. She had to. It was eating her alive. And maybe, just maybe, Sam could help in some way.

“I think I’m in love with her, Sam.” she whispered. “I think I’m in love with Kara.”

Sam was silent a moment.

“I suspected as much.”

“What?” said Lena as she broke their hug.

Sam smiled sadly. “The way you and Kara acted when you were around each other? The way you talked about her? It was like seeing you and Jack all over again.”

“I didn’t even see it, Sam.” admitted Lena. “It just sort of…happened. One minute Kara’s my best friend and then the next…” Lena was out of sorts and shrugged, “…then next I wake up quite literally in her arms one morning, freaking out.”

“Wait.” Sam blinked. “You slept together?”

“Not like that.” said Lena. “A week ago, Saturday, she had stayed the night. Again, actually. The three of us accidentally fell asleep in my bed while watching a movie. When I woke up in the morning Kara had her arm wrapped around me and…I don’t know. It scared me but something clicked.” she picked at her fingers. “I’m just so confused. Is it possible to not know that you’re not completely straight? Or maybe not even that. Is it possible that I only feel this way about her and no one else?”

Sam sighed loudly. “I honestly wish I could tell you the answer but I don’t know. Sexuality is kind of a complicated spectrum. The vast majority of the world’s population is strictly heterosexual which makes sense evolutionarily speaking. I mean, that’s the only way more humans could be made throughout history. Nature’s default. But sexuality can also be a bit more fluid than most people realize. So, yes, I think it’s both possible that you might be less than straight, but I also think that it’s possible that it really only is about Kara.” she rubbed Lena’s arms. “But I also think that you tend to overthink and over-analyze things.”

Lena’s shoulders relaxed and she let out the breath that she didn’t even know she was holding. She huffed a self-deprecating laugh with a small smile.

“I do tend to do that.” she looked at Sam. “But what if she doesn’t feel the same way? Honestly, Sam, I’d rather keep her as just a friend than not have her at all.”

She stopped and thought a moment. “Honestly, I don’t even think I’m mad at Kara about keeping her identity a secret. I can see the logic in it. I saw the hurt in her eyes in the way I spoke to her. But this? These feelings? It’s so much bigger than that. I know that Supergirl will still save me, but I might lose Kara forever.”

“I don’t know what to tell you, Lena. It’s your decision to make.” said Sam. “Regardless if you tell her or not, I will always have your back, okay? I will always choose you.”

“What did I ever do to deserve friends like you and Kara?” said Lena genuinely.

Sam smiled. “Because you’re Lena Fucking Luthor. Badass CEO. Brilliant scientist. And world-changing genius. You totally deserve to have friends that love and care about you.”

Lena threw her arms around Sam in a hug. “Thank you.”

“Any time, sweetie.” smiled Sam. “Now. Eat your dinner. I’ve got tiramisu for dessert. And I want to hear everything that’s been going on between you two since the plane because, clearly, something’s been going on.”

Chapter Text

The pristine white walls, floor, and desk of her office at L-Corp did little to offer Lena respite. For the first hour of the day it had given her a little solace just because it was a change of scenery, but the newness had quickly worn off and she purposely buried herself in work. She had given Sam a well-earned day off and had decided that she needed to spend the rest of the week working for both L-Corp and CatCo as a sort of penance.

She still hadn’t talked to Kara. She couldn’t. What would she say? An apology for what she had said, sure, she could do that, but an apology for committing the same exact sin of breaching trust? Well now that’s where she was falling a little short.  When she had told Sam Kara’s secret she had still been hurting from Kara’s betrayal but more than anything she wanted, needed, to talk to someone. So in a moment of weakness, mild spite, and hurt she had done the childish thing and hurt Kara right back, even if Kara wasn’t even aware of the injury yet.

So now here she was hiding in her office. Eve had dutifully forwarded everything from her CatCo office to this one. She had worked all through lunch—though Sam had one delivered to her and she actually ate it—and was now working late into the night. She had paid Sarah triple her rate to stay with Boomer for a few hours and keep him company and out of the crate.

She was working late to avoid thinking about everything because she knew that the onus was on her to extend the proverbial olive branch to Kara first. By lunch she had lost count how many times her finger had hovered over Kara’s name and the number of times she had pulled up a text only to stare at the harried and terrified text that she had sent that night. There were no words. What would she say? Then there was the guilt for telling Sam, who, to her credit, had made a joke about using a mind-wiping device later on that night.

Lena knew that it would inevitable that her and Kara’s paths would cross at some point in time, she couldn’t avoid her best friend for forever, especially since she was her boss. By the time she had trudged through the door at home later that night she had come up with a vague plan. It wasn’t much but it would have to do. She got ready for bed and climbed in, her heart already racing a million miles an hour in anticipatory anxiety. Boomer dutifully climbed up on the bed and snuggled close to her. She hugged him close. Tomorrow. Tomorrow she would go back to CatCo. It was otherwise neutral territory that would keep both of them from getting too emotional and would allow Lena to begin the apology process.

* * *

Kara didn’t come in to work. She had told James that she was out working on a new article idea.

“I know it’s probably none of my business but what happened between the two of you? Kara didn’t come in yesterday or Monday either. And for the brief moment I talked with her on the phone something seemed off.” said James.

Lena didn’t even look up from her computer. “If you don’t mind, James, I have a lot of work to catch up on. And as for what happened between me and Kara, I’m sure you will inevitably find out, but for now I would like to keep it just between her and I.”

She wasn’t cold with her words, but there was enough of a sureness that James had nodded in understanding.

“I hope you two work it out, whatever it is.” he said. “I’ve never seen Kara like this. Except when Mon-el left.”

James didn’t know it but he had just driven a dagger through her heart. Lena remembered the mess that Kara was a few months ago and to think that she was the cause of a similar mess just hurt her heart even more. Which is why once she was done with work for the day, she found herself standing outside of Kara’s apartment with Boomer at her side.

She had been standing there for a few minutes just staring at the door. If Kara was home she probably had heard her which only served to make Lena’s heart hammer harder. Boomer just sat at her side and would look up at her and then around the hallway. A few times his nose was in the air sniffing at something that caught his attention, but other than that he was surprisingly calm, probably because he had no idea where they were. Had he known that Kara was on the other side of the door he probably would have wound Lena’s legs together with the leash, tangling them both, before trying to scratch at the door in anticipation. Lena reached out her arm and knocked softly on the door and her heart skipped a beat. The door opened and it completely stopped.

“Hi.”

* * *

Lena wasn’t at work. Granted, Kara had come in a little early to get her things before running off, just so she wouldn’t run into her, but still. Seeing the empty office had made her heart sink even more.

The idea for her next article series had been inspired by Boomer. She couldn’t stop thinking about what had happened that night and how seemingly unaffected he had been so it got the gears in her mind turning. Was it because as an animal he was completely unaware of the level of danger he had been in? Or was it because his training had allowed for him to be calmer than any other dog would be? It had also made her think about different kinds of training that dogs go through and essentially the jobs that they end up having. Dogs with Jobs. That was her working title since the others had sounded a little too ridiculous.

Pooches with Paychecks. Wrong because they didn’t actually get paid.

Will Woof for Work. Nope.

Will Work for Treats. Maybe.

Good Girls and Boys with Jobs. Promising.

So that’s what she had done all day. Or at least what she had tried to do. She was just so…weary. There had been a small part of her that still hadn’t healed from what happened with Mon-el. For however imperfect and at times messed up their relationship had been, there had still been love. Messy and at times very selfish, but it was her first honest to god adult relationship that she had ever had. Sure, she had willingly turned a blind eye at times but it was out of a deeper need to connect with something, anything, that had any semblance of Krypton. Though he had essentially been her sworn enemy, Mon-el still understood more than anyone, even Kal, what it was like to lose your entire planet—and briefly even all of his people. So she had formed a bond with him over that. And in the end it wasn’t necessarily that she didn’t love him enough, but that their love had been built upon sandy ground and not solid bedrock. It was why, regardless of how much it had hurt, she was ultimately able to sacrifice him, them, for the world.

But with Lena.

Though it might not have been the entire world at stake she had been more than ready to drop those chemicals if it meant saving Lena. Risking her identity, almost killing someone. Kara had to be honest with herself, there wasn’t anything she wouldn’t do to keep Lena alive, to keep Lena. Kal’s words had played in a loop in her mind.

“I’d like to think that if it came down to a choice between Lois and the world, but…I don’t think I could.”

At first Kara didn’t appreciate the gravity of his words. However, after Lena’s second brush with death falling off her balcony, Kara had started to understand, though it had been on a more subconscious level at first. She hadn’t allowed Supergirl to show it, but once she got home she had finally let out the breath that she had been holding and had paced for nearly twenty minutes in an attempt to calm herself down. The experience had left her a little more than rattled. Had she not been on the phone…

So that’s why she was giving Lena the space she needed. Because she had seriously thought about it from her perspective. Lena was no doubt replaying every single Supergirl interaction they’ve ever had, which meant Kara’s actions would be laid bare, and possibly her feelings as well. And she wasn’t ready to handle that, she had only just barely made up her mind to tell Lena about Supergirl in the first place.

She had made some phone calls and had started setting up visits and interviews. The way it looked she would be out of the office pretty much all week, a minor reprieve. That hadn’t stopped her from constantly checking her phone or debating whether or not to reach out to Lena. Somehow she had managed to get an outline written as well and it looked like she was going to get several decent, and possibly long-format, articles out of all of this.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. The moment she opened it all of the breath got knocked out of her.

“Hi.” Lena said so softly.

Kara blinked a moment. “Hi.” she breathed.

“Can we talk?”

Kara just nodded and let Lena in. Per his usual Boomer tried to do his leg-weaving thing but got tangled up because of his harness. Kara just cracked a smile and unhooked his leash before getting down on his level and petting him. He gave her kisses.

“Hey, buddy, I missed you too.” she smiled softly before standing up.

Lena had already closed the door and was standing near her table and was fidgeting with her hands. Kara fought every urge she had to not start rambling.

“When I first moved to National City you were the only one that saw me for me and not my family.” Lena started. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to adequately articulate what that meant to me. It’s part of why I had even allowed myself to consider your friendship. And upon some serious self-reflection I understand why you wanted for me to just see you as Kara and not Supergirl.” She closed her eyes and fought against the tears. “I shouldn’t have said what I did. I was wounded and I let myself lash out at you in the one way I never thought I would.” She looked at Kara with tears in her eyes. “I’m so sorry, Kara. I don’t expect you to forgive me but—” her jaw trembled. “—but please don’t leave me.”

“I would never leave you, Lena.” Kara held her gaze. “You are too important to me and mean too much to me. I could never.” Tears filled her own eyes. “I don’t blame you for being so upset with me. I did the one thing that I promised I would never do.” She balled her lips over her teeth and cleared her throat. “For the longest time all I’ve wanted to do was keep you safe. To protect you because I was scared of losing you. And I know you are more than capable of taking care of yourself, but every time something happened to you and I wasn’t there or I wasn’t able to stop it in the first place, it just ate away at me.”

Kara stepped closer to her.

“When you fell off of the balcony that was the first time that, as your friend, I realized that I could really lose you for good.” she took a deep breath. “And I didn’t handle it well. Supergirl might have been the epitome of cool, calm, and collected, but internally I was freaking out. When I got home afterwards I almost had a panic attack.”

Lena couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She had no idea that all this time she had meant that much to Kara. She knew they were close but this…

Kara crossed her arms and looked down at her feet. “When I had to send Mon-el away my cousin told me that he had been humbled by my actions. That I was stronger than he could ever be. He said that if he had to make the same decision, that if it came down to the world or the one person he loved the most, that he didn’t think he would be able to make that kind of sacrifice for the world.” She looked back up at Lena, tears spilling over. “But I’m not that strong, Lena. I did love Mon-el but it wasn’t enough.” She started to cry.

“Hey, hey. It’s okay.” Lena went to her and hugged her. “You are strong, Kara. You’re one of the strongest people I know and it’s not because of Supergirl. You have such a genuine warmth and belief that people are inherently good and that takes a strength I know I don’t have.”

Kara shook her head and broke their hug. “Don’t say that, Lena. You are so strong. You left Metropolis to come to a new city to try and heal all of the hurt your family had caused. You single-handedly took L-Corp and turned it into a force for good.”

Now Lena was crying.

“You are so fierce, so compassionate, and so caring. The Luthor name doesn’t deserve you and never will. The Luthors will always be in the darkness.” She held Lena’s gaze intensely. “But you, Lena, you will always fall in the light.”

Lena searched her eyes. “Why?” she whispered. “Why do you always see me like that? Even after what I said to you? I don’t deserve it.”

“Yes you do, Lena.” said Kara emphatically. “You deserve to be happy. You deserve to have people in your life that you trust.” Her voice cracked. “People that know and understand just how much trust means to you. People that know that betraying that trust is a cardinal sin that never should be committed, because they would be at risk of losing you. And anyone that you’ve decided to let in would be a fool to let that go.”

Lena took Kara’s hands in her own and held them to her chest. “You’re not a fool, Kara.”

“I’m so sorry, Lena.” whispered Kara.

Lena shook her head. “I don’t deserve you as a friend, Kara. I—when I told you to leave…I—” she took a breath. The guilt was eating away at her. “Sam came over and I told her everything. I told her about you. About Supergirl. I know it wasn’t my place to do so. But I was still hurt and so so confused. The one person that I wanted to talk to was the one person I was so angry with.” she shrugged as the tears flowed. “I felt like I had no one in my corner. So I told Sam everything.”

Kara took a breath and was silent a moment. Lena closed her eyes and braced for the worst.

“I forgive you.”

Lena’s eyes flew open. “What?”

“I forgive you.” Kara said softly. “I hurt you and you felt like you didn’t have anyone. Sam and I will have to talk.” she let out a small laugh. “And Alex is going to have a lot of paperwork in her near future. But I understand and I forgive you. For everything.”

“I forgive you too.” said Lena softly. She shut her eyes against her tears. “Can we please just be back in each other’s lives? We don’t have to pretend that none of this happened. I just miss my best friend.”

She met Kara’s gaze once more and searched her eyes. Kara squeezed her hands gently and smiled. “I would like that. I missed you too.”

Lena threw her arms around Kara and hugged her close. They stood like that for what felt like an eternity until Boomer barked. They both smiled and parted, wiping their tears.

“Yes, that means you too, goofball.” said Kara and she petted him. She looked at Lena. “Would you like to go on a walk? I could honestly use the air.”

“I’d like that.”

* * *

Their walk started out as a way to lighten themselves after such a heavy situation and it was, but they had also opened up a new level to their friendship. Lena knew that she was safe now, safe for good, so she had gone against every ingrained instinct and opened up further to Kara. She talked more about her mother and how she had even planned a trip to Ireland once before changing her mind at the last minute. Kara had proven to still be her rock and encouraged her to maybe try again so that she could feel more connected with her. Lena also talked more in depth about boarding school and how Lex wasn’t always the monster he was now. In turn, Kara told her everything about Krypton. Growing up, her parents, Astra, Krypton’s destruction, the Phantom Zone, when she first arrived on earth and how the Danvers took her in.

Their short walk had turned into a couple of hours. They had stopped for dinner and ate out on the patio, Lena had even treated Boomer to a couple of plain burger patties for his dinner. Not that the dog had seemed like he was complaining at any point in time. Once he figured out that they were going to be out longer than usual he had stopped pulling on his harness and had opted for a much more leisurely pace. He still played fetch with Kara in the park. She had already gone ahead and bought a few toys for him to keep at her apartment including a Frisbee. Both Lena and Kara had been so relaxed and at ease with each other that Kara hadn’t even batted an eye when Lena sat down next to her at the park and leaned against her, yawning. Kara just smiled and had decided to take whatever little things she could get.

It was dark by the time they got to Lena’s building. Kara had insisted on walking her home, and since Lena now knew that Kara was more than perfectly safe to walk home alone even more than before, she allowed it. They stood a little awkwardly outside, neither one quite wanting to leave the other’s company.

“I had a really good time tonight, Kara.” Lena smiled.

Kara smiled back. “Me too.”

“So…will I see you at work tomorrow?” asked Lena.

“In the morning, yes, but later on I have an interview.” replied Kara. “Working on a new article series.”

“Oh?” Lena quirked a brow. “Do tell.”

Kara chuckled. “Well, as long as my boss approves it—”

Lena laughed.

“—it’s about dogs with jobs.” finished Kara. “Like Boomer. Or, uh, kinda. You know. Like seeing eye dogs, police dogs, search and rescue, therapy. All that.”

“That sounds really interesting and oddly perfect for you.” smiled Lena. “And I happen to have it on very good authority that your boss loves the idea.”

Kara laughed. “Good. I really think it’s going to be a good one.”

They stood looking at each other, feeling the weight of…something. Neither of them was sure of what or if they had both felt it, but it was there and neither one wanted to disturb the newness between them.

“Goodnight, Kara.” said Lena. “And thank you. For everything. I’ve said it before but I’ve never had a friend like you.”

Kara smiled. “Same. Goodnight, Lena.” she bent over and gave Boomer a kiss. “And goodnight to you, Boomer. You make sure your mom gets a good night’s sleep. Got it?”

Boomer just smiled his dopey smile and licked her on the nose. Kara laughed and turned to leave.

“See you tomorrow, Boss.”

Chapter Text

Kara was absolutely riding on cloud nine. She danced to music in the morning while she got ready for work. Her appetite had come back and stronger than ever. And a brilliant smile seemed to be permanently affixed to her face. Alex noticed, James noticed, and Winn. Kara didn’t even need to tell them that she had fixed everything with Lena because she was positively radiating happiness. To make things even better Alex, with J’onn’s blessing, had even given Lena a tour of the DEO after having her sign the mandatory NDA. Lena had even helped Winn with a piece of alien tech that he had been stumped for days on. He then made a passing remark.

“So why didn’t we bring her on board sooner?”

Which was met with a glare from Alex and a smile from Lena. Alex even met Boomer but after the look Kara gave her she had decided against putting his training to the test.

Everything was just perfect. Well, almost. There was still the lingering issue that Kara was hopelessly in love with her best friend.

By Friday everything seemed to be getting back to normal and getting better. Kara had been especially looking forward to it, she was going to spend most of the day with NCPD’s bomb squad and their dogs. Cloud and Barney were almost the complete opposite of Boomer. Both were incredibly calm and obeyed their handlers’ every command without a second thought. To make the day even better Alex had called during lunch and told her that the hired assassins, when faced with the potential death penalty from international courts that wanted them on war crimes, had signed plea deals for life with no parole and had given Edge up.

Morgan Edge had been quietly arrested at four in the morning after the assassins had warned that he might possibly have a dead man’s switch if caught. There wasn’t to be any coverage of his arrest until the FBI and NCPD were sure that all threats had been neutralized. The wave of relief that washed over Kara had been indescribable. With Alex’s blessing she would tell Lena later on tonight after work.

So when Lena surprised her with a video call not too much later, Kara was absolutely glowing.

“Lena, hi!” she smiled.

“Well someone looks happy.” laughed Lena. “It wouldn’t have to do with all of the dogs that you’ve been around would it?”

Kara laughed. “A little bit. Alex actually called me a little while ago and I have something to tell you. But not over the phone. Are you free for dinner or something tonight?”

Lena panicked for the briefest of moments. “It’s not anything bad is it?”

“Oh, god, no! No!” assured Kara. “Everything’s fine. Great, even.”

“Good. And dinner sounds great. I think I should be done with everything at a decent enough time.”

“Great. Oh, hey! Guess who I got to meet?”

Lena arched an eyebrow as Kara flipped the screen to show two golden retrievers.

“Meet Boomer’s sister Cloud and his brother Barney!” Kara practically squealed.

Both dogs looked at the camera in confusion.

“Oh my gosh. That’s amazing, Kara!” said Lena. “I can’t believe it. This is perfect.”

Kara flipped the camera back around as Lena flipped hers. Boomer was sitting in the office.

“Look who joined me for work this afternoon.” Kara could hear the smile in Lena’s voice. “Sarah had a family emergency and I just felt so guilty about leaving him crated all day, so I went home at lunch and got him.”

Kara laughed. Boomer was just sitting there though. She turned the phone to show Cloud and Barney and their handlers. At first the handlers smiled but then their faces fell. Lena could hear hushed tones.

“Is everything okay?” she flipped the camera to herself.

Kara looked worried. “Uh, Lena, could you show us Boomer again?”

Lena flipped the camera around. Boomer was stock still and silent facing the cabinet under the counter when Lena kept her decanter.

“How long has he been like that?” asked Kara seriously.

“Em, pretty much since he got here. Why?”

One of the handlers came on screen. “Miss Luthor, could you please tell Boomer to ‘seek’?”

“Em, okay?” Lena looked over at Boomer and kept the camera on him. “Boomer, seek.”

Boomer took one step forward and sat down, not looking away from the cabinet.

“Is everything alright?” asked Lena.

The handler turned grave. “Miss Luthor, I’m going to have to ask that you and your employees evacuate the building immediately. Boomer is indicating that there might be the presence of explosive materials. He may not have worked out as one of our bomb dogs but I trust his judgement.”

Lena’s heart leapt into her throat. She flipped the camera back around and was met with Kara’s worried face, she was still stuck at NCPD.

“Lena, get everyone out now!” yelled Kara. “NCPD is on their way.”

Kara hung up. Lena ran over to where Boomer was indicating and opened the cabinet. She froze.

There was a bomb.

She jumped up and ran out of the office.

“Everyone evacuate now!” she yelled at the top of her lungs. “There’s a bomb!”

She pulled the nearest fire alarm as everyone started running for the stairs, some screaming. James came running into the office. Lena was already knelt down and trying to figure out how to disarm it.

Two minutes.

“Lena, you have to get out of here!” he yelled.

“I’m not going anywhere, James! Take Boomer and get out of here.” she continued to analyze the bomb. “If this thing goes off it will take the entire top half of the building with it. I’m not letting anyone get hurt because of me. Make sure everyone is out! Now go!” she ordered.

James quickly hooked Boomer’s leash and practically had to drag him out of the office. Lena worked as quickly as she could. She managed to get one of the panels off but as soon as she did so it tripped a failsafe. She watched in horror as the numbers suddenly turned to ten seconds.

I love you, Kara.

A whirlwind suddenly tore through her office and the bomb was gone and out the balcony.

* * *

Kara tried to get away as fast as she could so she could change into her suit but the handlers mistook her urgency for civilian panic. After pretending to let them calm her down she said something about needing the bathroom and was off. When she was in the clear she blasted off towards CatCo, not caring if she accidentally broke the sound barrier along the way. She saw Lena and she saw the timer on the bomb and didn’t think. In a flash she grabbed the bomb and flew up high over the city. With only a second left she heaved it towards space with her all. But the explosive was more powerful than she realized. It hit and it hit hard. Kara was knocked out and fell from the sky.

* * *

Lena watched in horror as the limp body of Kara fell from the sky and then crash-landed on the balcony, halfway destroying it.

“Oh my god, Kara!” she cried as she ran over.

She dropped to her knees. Kara was covered in soot from the blast but thankfully was otherwise okay. Lena sat down and gingerly lifted her head and rested it in her lap. Tears welled up in her eyes.

“Please wake up, Kara.” She put her hand over the crest of Kara’s suit. “Please.”

The seconds that ticked by felt like hours. Tears streamed down Lena’s face as she let them freely fall. After an eternity Kara groaned to life.

Her eyes fluttered open as the fuzzy world around her slowly came into focus. The first thing she saw were worried green eyes.

“Lena?” she groaned.

Lena let out a watery laugh as Kara sat up and hug her. She closed her eyes and sobbed as she buried her face in Kara’s neck. Kara held on tight.

“I thought I was going to lose you for real this time.” Kara said softly. “I almost didn’t get here in time.”

“It’s my fault.” cried Lena. “I tried to disarm it but there was a failsafe.”

Kara immediately pulled back and held Lena’s face in her warm hands.

“It is not your fault.” she said firmly and definitively. “This was Edge. It was his dead man’s switch.”

“What?” Lena’s brow furrowed.

“Edge was arrested early this morning.” explained Kara. “Alex told me that the assassins gave up everything but warned that he might try one last thing out of desperation.”

“The bomb.”

Kara nodded. “I think so. That wasn’t any pipe bomb, that thing was meant to take out the whole building. Hurt like hell. Reminded me of that time I got hit with a Tomahawk missile.”

Lena’s jaw nearly dropped. “You were hit by what?”

Kara looked sheepish. “Just a little durability testing. Knocked me out the first time too.”

Lena pulled her back into a hug. “Just because you’re made of steel doesn’t mean that I don’t worry about you. You scared me, Kara.”

“I’m sorry. I’m Supergirl. It comes with the territory no matter how careful I am.” she sighed heavily and buried her face in Lena’s neck. “Besides, I’d get blasted out of the sky a million times if it meant keeping you safe.”

“Kara…” Lena’s voice broke.

Kara pulled back again to look at her.

“Lena? Are you—”

Lena couldn’t stand it any longer. She grabbed Kara’s face and kissed her. She suddenly panicked and broke the kiss and let her go, leaving a dazed Kara in her wake.

“Oh my god, Kara! I’m so sor—”

Kara cut her off as she pulled her back in for another kiss. Lena melted as tears of relief trailed down her cheeks.

“I love you.” Kara whispered on her lips.

Tears were shed by both as they kissed again.

“I love you.” whispered Lena.

They broke apart and were smiling. Kara moved to say something when James suddenly came back in.

“Lena are you—oh, Supergirl.” he stopped dead in his tracks.

Kara stood up and helped up Lena as well. “It’s alright James, Lena knows.”

“Oh, okay.” he looked between the two of them. “I saw the explosion. Are you alright, Kara?”

“I’m good.” said Kara.

“Good.” echoed James. “I think NCPD is here. They’re gonna want to do a sweep of the building.”

Kara nodded. “Of course. Edge might have another bomb planted somewhere else.”

James looked between the two of them again as neither one moved.

“Right. So…I’m gonna go check on Boomer.” he said taking a step back. “I guess you’ve got this handled. Uh, yeah.”

He turned on his heel and left. Kara turned back to Lena.

“We really should go. It’s totally possible that there’s another bomb.”

Lena nodded. Kara moved to leave when Lena suddenly grabbed her hand.

“Could…could we please go somewhere?” she said softly. “To be completely honest I don’t think I’m going to be able to get any more work done today.”

Kara softened and smiled. “Sure.”

* * *

They went down to the street level. Lena made sure to tell all her employees that they most certainly had the rest of the day off. NCPD then pulled her aside for a statement. Supergirl had quietly slipped away and got Boomer from James and took him back to Lena’s before coming back for her. Lena was able to slip away as well without anyone noticing and flew off with Supergirl. Though it was a very short flight she readily wrapped her arms around Kara’s neck and didn’t want to let go. Kara gently touched down on the balcony but continued to hold Lena in her arms with a smile. She gave her another kiss before setting her down. Boomer immediately came up to them with a more mellow attitude than usual. Kara got down and gave him a hug.

“You are such a good boy, Boomer. I’m so proud of you. You saved your mom’s life you know?” she ruffled his ears. “You did such a good job finding that bomb. Yes you did. You deserve all of the treats. Yes! All of the treats!”

“Yes he does.” Lena knelt beside her. She gave Boomer a kiss on the nose. “I think we need to make a special visit to that bakery again and get you a whole cake this time!”

Kara had gotten up and retrieved a special treat from a secret stash.

“What is that?” gaped Lena. “And where did you get it?”

Kara laughed. “I may or may not have secretly stopped at a dog boutique that sells all organic cow ears. Extremely high in protein, nowhere near as greasy as a pig ear, and unlike rawhide it actually digests in their stomachs. Plus it’ll keep him busy for a couple of hours.”

Boomer’s tail was wagging almost violently and a thin string of drool hung from his mouth. Kara tossed it to him. He caught it with ease and went to hide behind the chair with his treat, obviously not wanting to share. Kara just chuckled at him while Lena walked up to her.

“So…” she started.

“So…” Kara echoed.

Lena put a hand over Kara’s crest and looked into her eyes. “You love me, huh?”

Kara’s hands had minds of their own as they found purchase on Lena’s hips.

“Yeah. For a while now.” Kara admitted.

“Really?”

“Really.”

“Mm.” Lena hummed. “I don’t—” she closed her eyes. “I’m scared, Kara.” She looked back up at her. “I’ve never felt this way before…about a woman.”

Kara nodded. “I know what you mean.”

“So you’re not…”

“I don’t know exactly what I am.” admitted Kara. “Maybe bisexual. But I don’t think it matters. The only thing I know is that I love you, Lena. And I have for some time now.”

“I love you too, it’s just…this is all so new to me.” said Lena. “What if I say or do something wrong? What if I ruin this? What if…what if I can’t be what you need me to be?”

“If it helps even I don’t know what this—” she gestured between them, “—is. I just know that I don’t ever want to lose you, Lena. And that I’ve wanted to kiss you so badly but was scared that if I told you my feelings that it would scare you off or make things awkward between us. You set the pace, I’ll follow.”

“You didn’t think I would feel the same?” Lena searched her eyes.

“To be fair, you never gave me any reason to think that it would even be a possibility.” smirked Kara.

“Neither did you.” Lena smirked back.

Kara chuckled. “You know what? I have an idea. What if I run home real quick and get some of my stuff then come back here for the night? We could order a bunch of food and just—” she shrugged, “—talk.”

Lena smiled and her shoulders relaxed. “That sounds wonderful. I feel like I need to soak in a hot Epsom salt bath for a week.”

Kara grinned. “I totally agree. I personally feel like I’ve been blown up or something.” she wagged her eyebrows.

“Har har.” Lena rolled her eyes. She shyly gave Kara a quick kiss. “I’m going to get changed then. Hurry back.”

* * *

Though Lena might have told her to hurry Kara took her time. She didn’t want to appear too eager. But she mean what she said, there was no rush and she would let Lena set the pace. As she put together an overnight bag she wondered exactly how much she should tell Lena. It was probably wise to leave her most recent dream for another time. This next step, whatever it may be, was not only new to their relationship but a brand new world for Lena all together. Kara grabbed her comfiest clothes and a few toiletries. In a brief moment of forgetfulness she grabbed her glasses. She stopped herself and stared at them wistfully for a moment before putting them back on her dresser with a small smile. The relief of their burden was something that she couldn’t quite put into words yet. After taking about fifteen minutes she flew back to Lena’s.

Lena was sitting on the floor in a pair of soft sweats and Kara’s old NCU sweatshirt that she had borrowed that night at Sam’s. Kara couldn’t believe she had forgotten about it. Lena had already taken off her makeup for the night and her hair was gathered in a loose and messy bun. Kara watched from a distance for a moment, just enjoying how soft and light Lena looked as she pet Boomer. She landed and Boomer’s ears perked and his tail thumped on the ground.

Kara held up her bag. “I’m just gonna change.”

She was a blur for a moment before appearing in front of them again in soft sweat pants and the softest t-shirt she had and let her hair stay down. Lena got up from the floor and let Boomer continue enjoying his treat and sat on the couch and curled up her legs. Kara sat down opposite from her. For a moment they just looked at each other.

“Is this weird?” Lena finally broke the silence.

“No.” said Kara softly. “I think it feels…right.”

“I think I do too.”

“So you’ve never thought about being with a woman before?”

Lena picked at her fingers. “Honestly? I don’t know. It’s all I’ve thought about for the last two weeks and I still can’t seem to come up with a concrete enough answer. It was just something I never considered, I think. I don’t know. Maybe it could have something to do with being raised by the Luthors? Strict rules. No deviations from whatever Lionel or Lillian imposed upon Lex and I. It was never even a thought because it could never be a reality. I don’t think Lillian or even Lex for that matter are actually homophobic or anything, just that…there are certain…expectations? To be perfectly frank I think Lillian would rather I was an outright lesbian than openly in a relationship with an alien. No offense.”

Kara just chuckled. “None taken. I understand. Earth is a little strange when it comes to those things.”

Lena leaned an arm on the back of the couch. “What were things like on Krypton?”

“It was kind of a mixed bag. There were those that stuck to the new ‘old ways’. Which meant there was a genetic matching process. No sex, no romance, just best compatible genetic material and the birthing matrix.” said Kara. “But then there were others. Like my parents and Kal’s. They fell in love and I was a product of that. I believe there were homosexual pairings, but I guess I just was never exposed to it. It’s not like anyone really had a problem with it. If anything those that adhered to a more ‘sterile’ and traditional science-based culture somewhat looked down on heterosexual couples that conceived naturally. They thought it an insult to the great scientific minds that had made Krypton what it was.”

“I don’t know if that’s sad or enlightened?”

“Maybe a little of both? But anyways.” Kara sighed. “Growing up in Midvale with the Danvers it wasn’t like I had some sort of sheltered life. I knew that human sexuality was a bit more complicated and stigmatized but it’s not like it was some sort of foreign concept to me. I guess I just dated boys because it was easier? I mean, I’ve always found women attractive but I guess I never really thought about it beyond that. It wasn’t until Alex came out to me that I realized that there might have been a part of me as well that I might have been burying.”

Lena listened with rapt attention. Kara smiled and mirrored her position.

“Do you remember that day Clark and I came back to your office after writing that article about you?”

Lena smiled. “Yes I do.”

“Afterwards Clark told me that after you had said what you had said about me being a reporter that I looked quote gobsmacked.”

Lena chuckled. “I think I remember that. God, you seemed like you were so intimidated by me.”

“I was!” blurted Kara. “How could I not be? You’re Lena Luthor! You were my age and running your own damn company! Not to mention you have quite an imposing presence when you are in CEO mode.”

Lena laughed. “Darling, I have to be. It’s the only way I can wrangle the board. You try being stuck in a room with a bunch of stodgy businessmen who should have retired a century ago. Even after getting some new blood in there, including a few women, I still am held to an insanely high standard and am under constant scrutiny. And not just by them.”

Kara reached out for her hand and took it. “And that’s one of the things I love about you. You are so strong, Lena. You have been through so much and yet you keep trying to heal the wounds of your family and bring good to this world. I might have super powers but you inspire people to be better than their circumstances. If anyone is a hero it’s you, Lena.”

“How do you do that?” Lena gazed at her.

“Do what?”

“Keep seeing the good in everyone. In me.”

“It just comes naturally, I guess. And I only see the good in you because it’s there.” Kara looked at her thoughtfully. “You want to know the moment I think I fell in love with you?”

“When?”

“I will admit I wasn’t aware of it at the time, but I think it was that time we had lunch at CatCo. You were so incredibly excited about this new partner you were working with.”

“You mean a genocidal world-conquering alien?”

“Lena, you know what I mean. You were so excited about the potential of the technology you were working on. You told me yourself that you thought it would end famine and the need for fossil fuels and so much more. That it was going to be revolutionary. Looking back that’s when it all started for me.”

“So when did you start being ‘aware’?”

“I should have questioned things clear back to when I saved you when you fell off of the balcony, but what really did it for me was when Rhea had kidnapped you. Even though I knew Mon-el could handle himself, I was more worried about you. And it’s not because you didn’t have powers or the ability to fight back against the Daxamites. I was terrified that I was going to somehow lose you for forever. The fact that both you and Mon-el were inspiring the same feelings should have been a big ol’ neon sign in front of my face.”

Lena chuckled at that remark.

Kara continued. “But what solidified it in the spotlight was that Sunday morning I woke up in your bed. I just couldn’t keep lying to myself anymore. Everything came rushing to the surface and I couldn’t bury it anymore.”

She held Lena’s gaze. “When you were on that plane and told me to save the chemicals it was in that moment that I finally understood what my cousin was talking about. I was more than ready to drop those chemicals, Lena, if it meant saving you.”

“I would never ask you to make that decision.” Lena said softly.

“I know.” said Kara just as softly. “And I don’t expect you to. But I couldn’t imagine a world without you in it.”

Kara stroked her thumb over the back of Lena’s hand.

“You know it was that same morning that made me question myself too?” said Lena.

“Really?”

Lena nodded. “When I woke up in your arms…” she shook her head. “At first I was scared because of the way that I was feeling. I really, really like it. But then it scared me because I didn’t know I was capable of such feelings. And yes, it was specifically because you were a woman. But then it was because it was you, and I didn’t want to ruin anything between us. It wasn’t the first time I had thoughts like that though, about you, I mean. After Supergirl rescued me I wanted nothing more than to find you and to hug you and hold on and never let go. I knew how much you meant to me as a best friend, but I knew it was deeper than that.”

She sighed. “It sent me into a tailspin. Was I attracted to women before? Did I even have that capacity? Had I just been lying to myself or burying a part of myself? I thought about it so much that I had started to get stuck in a loop and was getting nowhere. So I, uh…” she flushed a little bit. “So I did a little bit of experimenting.”

Kara quirked an eyebrow.

“I watched an episode from a Netflix show and while it was interesting and very surprising, it didn’t necessarily make me feel any kind of way.”

“What show was it?”

“That one where the woman goes to prison after smuggling drug money for her girlfriend.”

“Orange is the New Black?”

“Yes.”

Kara snorted trying to hold back some laughter. “I don’t think that’s where you should have started.”

Now Lena quirked a brow. “Oh? And where should I have? This whole thing is completely uncharted territory for me.”

“I don’t know.” said Kara honestly. “But I’ve seen a few seasons of that show and I can see why it might have left you with more questions than answers, even though it’s pretty funny at times. I could ask Alex. I bet she has some ideas.”

Lena chuckled. “Maybe. But anyways. I felt like there was more experimentation needed. So there might have been an attempt at fantasy and maybe reading some fanfiction.”

“Oh? I didn’t peg you for a fanfic type.”

“It has its merits. But that’s not the point. The point is that it still wasn’t really doing anything for me that I was aware of. Even after I tried to, em, take things into my own hands.”

“I don’t get where this is going.”

Lena was bright red. “What I’m trying to say is that while I found both women beautiful there wasn’t any there, there. So I started thinking about it more and thought, well, maybe it’s just because I don’t have a type when it comes to women because I’ve never consciously thought about it before.”

“Okay…”

“So being a scientist I knew that I needed to expand my sample size beyond just those two. And, em, let’s just say there was a there and it left me with even more questions. However it did lean towards confirmation that I might not exactly be completely straight myself.”

Kara had blushed too. “I see. Well, sometimes it takes a little…self exploration?”

They were both silent for a beat.

“I guess part of why I brought this up is not just because it’s part of how I realized that I could really truly be in love with you, but because when I allowed myself to think about the off-chance that you had felt the same way about me, I just didn’t want you to be disappointed. I just don’t know how far—”

“You don’t have to say anything more.” Kara interrupted. “Lena, I would never make you do anything that you weren’t comfortable with. Besides, I don’t even know if I’m ready myself. So no pressure. Okay?”

“Okay.” Lena bit her lip and looked at Kara’s lips. “Kara?”

“Yeah?”

“Can I kiss you again?”

“Please.”

They both scooted towards the center of the couch and leaned in. The kiss was softer than their first and chaste. Lena broke it.

“Thoughts?” wondered Kara.

Lena answered by quickly closing the gap between them and kissing her with more passion. Kara remained true to her word and let Lena set the pace. It didn’t take long before Lena was licking at her lips, asking for an invitation. Kara readily complied and opened her mouth. The kisses remained slow but deep. Kara melted into the kisses and Lena was surprised at how her own body was singing. She felt an urge and went with it, pushing Kara back against the couch and straddling her lap. Kara’s hands immediately went to her hips. Lena held her face and started to pick up the pace. Kara suddenly broke the kiss.

“You don’t have to go fast.” she panted.

“I know.” Lena panted. “I want this, Kara. Is that okay?”

Kara nodded. “More than okay. Just checking in.”

“How gentlemanly of you.” Lena chuckled low and deep in her chest, sending chills down Kara’s spine.

Lena went back in and they resumed their faster pace. She wanted to devour Kara but also wanted to savor every moment. Every touch. Every taste. It was all so new and so utterly intoxicating. She couldn’t believe how her body was reacting. It was clear from the small whimper in the back of Kara’s throat that she was just as affected. Lena kept her pace steady. Her breath hitching when Kara’s thumbs had wormed their way under her sweatshirt and were rubbing her hip bones ever so gently. If Lena were to die in this moment it would all be worth it. She didn’t think it had anything specifically to do with the fact that she was kissing a woman, but because she was kissing Kara. Kara who was her best friend. Kara who loved her for her and not her name or her money.

Kara had gotten ahold of her body and had settled in to the languid pace that Lena was keeping. She felt like she was slowly being roasted over a fire and wouldn’t have it any other way. A little bit had to do with finally kissing a woman for the first time in her life, but the rest of it was Lena, all Lena. Lena who still saw her as Kara. Lena who was her best friend and had loved her back. Lena who was…home.

Their make-out session had lasted for a couple of hours before Kara’s stomach had rudely interrupted them, making Kara roll her eyes and Lena laugh. They had reluctantly parted while Lena ordered them a feast and Kara gave Boomer some much-needed attention. It was going to be a while before dinner was delivered so they took Boomer on a walk. Smiling as they walked hand-in-hand like a bunch of love-drunk fools.

Chapter Text

Dinner had been a cozy affair. They sat next to each other on the couch and watched Star Wars: Episode IV. Lena had suggested it since it was something that they both loved and wouldn’t pressure either of them. After dessert Kara had ended up with her head in Lena’s lap while Lena gently played with her hair. Lena had never felt so relaxed and at ease. Even her relationship with Jack hadn’t seemed this…simple. This...whatever it was…felt different. Maybe it was because they had been friends with no intention of ever diving into a relationship. Friendship didn’t have the same expectations or worries about compatibility. It had been incredibly intimate even though it had been strictly platonic. Kara could be Kara and Lena could be Lena.

Boomer had decided that he was feeling a little left out and jumped up on the couch, walked over a giggling Kara, and set his head on her head while flopping down on top of her. Kara turned into a cackling mess which made Lena laugh. But the scene made her heart do a funny little flip and the laughter faded to a few silent tears.

“Lena?” said Kara as she twisted trying to move Boomer out of the way to see her.

She saw the tears and quickly sat up. “Hey. What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” Lena wiped her tears through a watery laugh. “I just…” her voice cracked. “I just never thought I’d find…this.”

“Find what?”

“You. Boomer. Alex. James, Winn, Sam.” She paused a beat and looked at Kara. “Family. Love.”

It was Kara’s turn to let out a watery laugh as tears filled her eyes. “I know what you mean.”

She leaned in and gave Lena a kiss. To which, once again, Boomer felt left out and started licking both of them in the face.

“Boomer!” laughed Kara.

“Yes. I know.” Lena said to Boomer as he kept kissing her. “You love us and we love you too.”

Kara pulled him back. “Okay, buddy. You’ve had enough. Maybe I wanna kiss mommy too, ever think about that? Eh, lover boy?”

“Yeah.” echoed Lena as she grabbed a fistful of Kara’s shirt and pulled her in with a Cheshire cat grin. “Maybe I wanna kiss your momma.”

Kara came to a screeching halt and her eyes were wide. “Momma!?”

“Oh, please.” Lena laughed. “You’ve basically been that since day one. You’ve spoiled him more than I have.” she arched a dangerous eyebrow. “Momma Kara.”

Kara barked a laugh and Lena kissed her. It didn’t take long for the rest of the movie to be abandoned. Quite some time later Lena’s enthusiasm began to wane. Kara pulled back to look at her and almost instantly Lena yawned.

“I agree.” Kara yawned back.

Lena chuckled as she twirled Kara’s hair in her fingers. “I’m tired but I don’t want to stop. Kissing you has proven to be quite addicting.”

Kara smiled. “Tell me about it. I don’t think kissing has ever felt like this before.”

“Probably because it might have something to do with missing out on the quintessential teenage experience of sneaking a significant other into your bedroom in the middle of the night.” said Lena. “Or whatever else I missed out on.”

Kara just laughed. “Did you get your entire perspective on American teenagers from 80s movies?”

Lena laughed. “No. But boarding school didn’t exactly allow for a typical high school experience.”

“Neither did being an alien who didn’t have her powers in control.” countered Kara.

“Point taken.” smiled Lena. “Do you think we are trying to make up for lost time?”

“Maybe.” Kara sat up and then pulled Lena up. “However, I don’t know about you, but I don’t plan on stopping this—” she gestured between them, “—any time soon.”

Lena’s eyes practically sparkled. “Same.”

Kara sighed happily. “Good. I think it’s time for bed then. We’ve both had a long day.”

There was a muted gruff from across the room.

“I guess you’ve had quite the day too, huh?” Kara said to Boomer. “We still need to figure out a proper treat for the world’s goodest boy.”

Boomer’s ears perked at the word “treat” and Lena laughed.

“God, he’s just like you. Always thinking with his stomach.”

Kara gaped at her in feigned hurt. “I do not.”

Lena leveled a look at her and didn’t budge.

“Okay, fine. So maybe I have a little bit of a sugar problem.” admitted Kara.

Lena arched a sculpted brow. “Darling, if you were human you would be a diabetic by now.”

They both chuckled and got up. Kara speed cleaned the kitchen while Lena started getting ready for bed. They both smiled at each other while brushing their teeth side by side. Lena blushed and hip-checked Kara, immediately regretting bumping living steel. Kara just laughed. Lena playfully shoved her and Kara let herself be pushed this time.

Lena had decided to take a quick shower to wash off the stress of the day so Kara took Boomer on one last quick walk. When she got back Lena was still in the bathroom. A quick sniff check confirmed to Kara that she did still smell a little like explosive residue and smoke so she took a fast shower in the guest bath. By the time she was finished Lena was just crawling under the covers of her bed. Kara turned off the lights and stopped at the foot of it, suddenly all-too self-conscious. Lena saw her hesitation and opened up the other side of the bed.

“Get in here, goof.”

Kara practically hopped in bed, with Boomer right behind her. She laid perfectly still on her back looking at the ceiling.

“Kara…”

Kara looked over at Lena. “What?”

“It’s okay. This isn’t too fast. For god’s sake we already slept together once before.” quipped Lena.

Kara scooted closer and Lena rolled over with her back to her. She reached behind and grabbed Kara’s arm and draped it over her hip with a contented hum.

“Much better.”

“Yeah.” agreed Kara quietly. “Goodnight.”

“Night.”

“I love you, Lena.”

“I love you, Kara.”

Gruff.

“We love you too, Boomer.” they both said practically in unison.

* * *

If the first time they had shared a bed together was the best sleep Lena had ever gotten, then last night had been heaven in comparison. Not only did she fall asleep in Kara’s arms, but she got to wake up in them too, and this time she was allowed to enjoy every moment of it without question. Lena knew she shouldn’t be surprised how heavy Kara actually is given how muscular she is, but it was still an interesting sensation to wake up with essentially a lead blanket draped over her waist down. Kara was basically on top of her, her head resting on Lena’s belly and her arms wrapped around her waist. Lena smiled at the weight and the warmth as she played with long blonde hair between her fingers. The sun was already up but for once there was really no reason for her to get up. She was perfectly fine staying just like this for as long as humanly possible.

The first thing Kara became aware of was not only how relaxed she was but how soft and warm the thing underneath her was. As she woke up she realized it was Lena and smiled to herself. A contented hum rumbled in her chest as she felt Lena play with her hair.

“Morning.” said Lena softly, her voice deliciously low.

“Morning.” husked Kara. “Sleep good?”

“Mmhmm. You?”

“Never better. Literally.”

Lena chuckled warmly.

“Don’t wanna get up.” sighed Kara.

“Me neither.”

“Probably should though. Boomer.”

“He’s fine.”

“Good.” Kara pulled Lena closer and buried her face in her soft belly. “So soft. Don’t wanna move.” her voice was muffled a little.

Lena scratched at Kara’s back. “As comfortable as this is, you shifted just right and are now on my bladder.”

Kara sighed dramatically. “Fine. I’ll get up.”

She popped her head up and smiled. “Morning.”

“Morning.” Lena giggled.

They kissed. Kara rolled over and stretched while Lena got up.

“So what do you want to do today?”

“To be honest I’m perfectly fine with doing absolutely nothing.” Lena said loudly from the bathroom. “For once in my life I think I just want to have a lazy day.”

“Perfect!” Kara shouted.

She kicked herself up and out of bed and started getting Boomer ready for his morning walk. Lena walked out.

“Personally, I wouldn’t mind picking up where we left off last night.” she said with a sly smile and a slight blush.

“Oh, really?” Kara wagged her eyebrows.

“Mmhmm.” hummed Lena as she put a hand on Kara’s chest. “I’ve never felt like this before and I’m keen on making it last as long as possible.”

She kissed her.

“Noted.” smirked Kara. “I’m going to take Boomer on a walk.”

“Okay.” smiled Lena. “I’ll make breakfast.”

“Oh! Chocolate chip pancakes?”

Lena swore if Kara had a tail it would be wagging.

“Fine. Just wait a second and I’ll come with you. We’ll have to stop at the store and get some.” Lena caved all-too easily.

Their playful banter and flirtation during breakfast proved to be a little too invigorating and they soon found themselves on Lena’s bed furiously making out once more. This time Kara, with Lena held in her arms, kicked the door closed behind them so that they wouldn’t be interrupted this time.

Lena had felt a bit more brave and had snaked her hands under Kara’s shirt, greedily splaying them over her abs. Kara was so hard yet so soft at the same time and it was making her dizzy. Kara’s hands couldn’t get enough of Lena either as they too had made their way under her shirt and were exploring the planes of her back.

Their session was cut short as Kara’s phone rang.

“Crap.” groaned Kara as she rolled over to get her phone. “Shoot. It’s Alex. Dammit. She’s going to be mad. I was supposed to be on patrol this weekend.”

She looked at Lena with a pained expression.

“Go.” Lena smiled softly. “My guess is that Supergirl is needed more than me kissing you is.”

“I’m sorry. I’ll be back as quick as possible.” Kara gave her a quick peck and was off.

Lena hadn’t been kidding about taking a lazy day. She played with Boomer and decided to give that Netflix series another try in between Kara getting called away for Supergirl duties. But the moment Kara came back they were all over each other like they had been separated for months.

“I forgot.” panted Kara as she pulled back. “Alex said game night is back on for tonight.”

“When was it off?” panted Lena.

Kara suddenly looked sheepish. “Back when, um…”

“Before I found out about Supergirl.” finished Lena.

“Kind of.” said Kara. “That and with everything that kept happening with Edge. We were all kind of, well, on edge.”

“Understandable. I guess this means we will have to stop acting like horny teenagers for a few hours.”

For a moment Kara looked like she was seriously considering her options.

“Kara!” Lena smacked her shoulder. “We are going.”

“I know. I know.” Kara laughed. “Besides, everyone wants to see Boomer.”

Lena arched a brow. “Oh, so our being invited anywhere is now contingent on his presence?”

Kara chuckled. “It would seem so.”

* * *

“That’s it! Kara and Lena aren’t allowed to be partners anymore!” shouted Alex.

“You’re just mad ‘cause you lost!” countered Kara.

Alex scooted to the edge of her couch and pointed an accusatory finger at her sister. “I wouldn’t have lost if you two hadn’t cheated!”

“We did not cheat!” hollered Lena in feigned hurt.

Kara crossed her arms and mock glared at her sister. “First of all, Lena is not only a science genius but a Star Wars one too.”

“Right.” agreed Lena.

Kara continued without missing a beat. “Second, you’re just jealous that my Disney trivia knowledge is better than yours. And you even have a kid on your team. No offense, Ruby.”

“None taken.” Ruby laughed.

“Don’t make me separate you two.” said J’onn in a fatherly tone.

“But—” started Alex.

Sam cut her off. “While I commend your effort, Alex, you did lose fair and square. You’ll get them back during charades.”

“Uh, excuse me—” scoffed Winn. “—but I am the charades master. You’re all going down.”

He held up his hand to high-five J’onn who shot him a look. Winn cowered a moment before J’onn laughed warmly and gave him one.

Everyone laughed and Lena surreptitiously snuggled closer to Kara, but it didn’t go unnoticed by Alex.

“You two seem pretty chummy since making up.” she commented.

Both Kara and Lena flushed bright crimson.

“Pfft. What? No?” Kara deflected. “We’re just the same as before. Just…better now that Lena knows.”

“Yeah.” followed Lena. “Stronger than ever.” her eyes twinkled. “El Mayarah."

“El Mayarah.” smiled Kara.

Sam scrutinized the both of them. “Hmm. I don’t think I buy it.”

“Yeah.” agreed Alex. “If I didn’t know any better I’d swear, Kara, that you just made heart eyes at Lena.”

Kara’s blush deepened and she gaped like a fish. She tried fruitlessly to figure out what to say.

“No, Boomer!” yelled James suddenly.

But it was too late for the remaining pizza slice sitting in the box on the counter.

“Oh, god I really hope he doesn’t puke later.” groaned Lena, thankful for the distraction. “With everything Kara already fed him today.”

“Hey! Bacon is totally something a carnivore would eat.” Kara defended herself.

The group dissolved into laughter and thankfully let the questionable status of Kara and Lena’s friendship go.

The rest of the night was filled with laughter and the love of found family. Kara purposely hung around until everyone else left before pulling Alex aside into her bedroom.

“What’s up?” asked Alex.

Kara glanced over at Lena who was still cleaning things up in the kitchen.

“Um, can I ask you a favor?” asked Kara in a hushed tone.

“Sure.”

“Could you take over patrol for the rest of the weekend?”

“Kara—”

“Alex, I will work every weekend for the next month. Please?”

Alex looked her sister over. “I was right.”

“Maybe.” Kara glanced back over at Lena. “We haven’t fully discussed everything and I would like the chance to. Uninterrupted, that is.”

Alex looked at Lena who was now getting Boomer ready to leave and then back at her sister.

“Ugh. Fine.”

“Thank you.” smiled Kara.

She hugged Alex.

“But don’t think that we won’t talk about this later.”

“I know.”

* * *

“So.” said Kara as they walked in the door to Lena’s penthouse. “I talked with Alex.”

“I saw that.” commented Lena. “What was it about?”

She took off Boomer’s leash and harness and he immediately went for one of his chew toys.

“I asked her if she would take over patrol for tonight so that we could talk.”

“Ah.” nodded Lena. “She knows.”

“Not exactly.” said Kara. “I just told her that you and I needed to talk.”

“Oh?” Lena couldn’t help the internal panic and did her best to shove it down.

“It’s not super important and there’s no pressure.” assured Kara. “It’s just, when Alex accused us of—” she gestured, “—doing whatever it is we’re doing, I couldn’t even tell her what we weren’t because, well, what are we?”

Lena looked at her quizzically. “You mean as far as describing our relationship?”

“Yeah.”

“Well…” started Lena. “I suppose girlfriends would be the correct descriptor, though am I unsure as to it being the correct status?”

“I agree. To the description, I mean.” said Kara. “I mean…it feels right but…”

“But not quite right.” finished Lena.

“Yeah. But not in a bad way.”

“I know what you mean.”

“I, uh, was thinking about it on the way home and nothing really seemed to fit. I just kept coming back to ‘we’re just Lena and just Kara’.”

Lena stepped into her space and draped her arms around Kara’s neck. “I like the way that sounds.”

She gave Kara a quick peck on the lips.

“Me too.” said Kara contentedly.

Lena smiled and went back in for another kiss, this time it lasted significantly longer. It didn’t take long before both of them were panting and trying to devour each other.

“God.” moaned Lena. “I don’t know what it is but it’s like I can’t get enough of you.”

“I know.” Kara sounded just as affected. “Rao. I love you.”

“I love you.”

Kara made a move like she was headed towards the couch but Lena grabbed her by her belt loops.

“Mm-mm.”

“No couch?” said Kara.

Lena bit her lip. She had been thinking about this all day while Kara was under her, over her. Kara had promised to let her set the pace. She looked at Kara, her eyes blown and hooded.

“Bed.”

“Bed?”

“Bed.”

“Are you sure?”

“Very. You?”

“Very.”

They came crashing back together and Kara quickly picked Lena up and went straight for the bedroom, once again closing the door with her foot. The bedroom was dark save the lights from the city outside. Kara stopped just short of the bed and let Lena down.

“Are you sure?” she checked again.

“Yes.” said Lena. “I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about it all day.”

“Me too.”

“Kara?”

“Yeah?”

“Can we just…go slow? This is new territory for me.”

“Me too.”

Their kisses slowed and were gentler and less frantic. Kara cradled Lena’s face while Lena held on to her hips. Her hands inched their way under Kara’s shirt. Kara didn’t stop her as they slowly worked their way higher. Both of them gasped as Lena’s hands touched Kara’s breasts. Kara took a step back and took off her shirt before stepping back in for another kiss. Lena grabbed her hands and deliberately put them under her shirt. Kara understood what she was silently asking and snaked her way up her body. Lena couldn’t help but whimper as strong hands cupped her over her bra. Lena was soon divested of her shirt and gasping as Kara started kissing her neck. Her hands fumbled as she tried to undo Kara’s jeans and whimpered at the sudden loss of pleasure on her neck as Kara quickly took off her own jeans. Lena did the same. They both stood there, illuminated by the city lights, looking at each other. Even in the dim light Lena could tell that Kara’s pupils were blown wide and her eyes were dark.

“Are you still sure?” asked Kara.

Lena shoved her nerves down. She had never been so sure in all her life. She reached behind her back and undid her bra and let it drop to the floor.

“Rao, Lena.” breathed Kara.

Kara already knew that Lena was gorgeous, but seeing the expanse of pale skin in the dim light had seemingly taken her beauty to a new level. Kara reached around her own back and took off her bra as well.

Lena bit her lip. Her mind was all over the place. While she had seen and thought about those two women from the show, she hadn’t much of reaction to them. But Kara. For some reason seeing Kara bare herself before her had sent her libido skyrocketing. Lena still didn’t know what to label herself or where in the hell she fell on the spectrum of sexuality, but she did know one thing: she wanted Kara like she had never wanted anyone before in her life. So she stalked forward and kissed Kara in hopes of conveying what she couldn’t yet say out loud.

They both moaned as their breasts touched. Lena walked them back until she felt the bed behind her and pulled Kara with her as she fell back. Kara wrapped a strong arm around her waist and floated them both so that they were completely on the bed before resuming the trail of hot kisses down Lena’s neck. Lena squirmed as Kara worked her way down. She gasped and arched off of the bed as a hot mouth enveloped her breast.

Kara was going out of her mind with arousal. Every new part of Lena’s body that she explored with her mouth became her favorite. And the sounds that Lena was making was like liquid fire in her veins urging her on.

As much as Lena’s eyes were starting to roll back in her head she decided that she wanted her turn. She pushed on Kara’s shoulders and Kara let herself be pushed over and into the bed. Lena immediately started a similar trail of kisses down her neck and relished in the sounds that she was pulling from Kara. Kara bit back a moan as Lena lavished attention to her chest. Lena couldn’t get over how soft Kara felt in her mouth yet so firm underneath her. She released Kara with a pop and came back up and crashed their mouths together. Her hand traced down Kara’s chest and touched the top of her underwear.

“Wait.” Kara panted as she grabbed her wrist.

Lena searched her eyes.

“Together.” said Kara.

She gave Lena a small push and Lena laid down next to her. She reached down and started to remove her underwear and Lena did the same. They both took a moment to drink each other in.

“Rao, you’re so beautiful, Lena.” breathed Kara.

“Speak for yourself.” breathed Lena.

Kara kissed her deeply. Their hands moved in tandem as they slowly slid lower. Lena gasped and Kara moan as Kara made contact first.

“So wet.” Kara said on her lips. “God, you’re so wet.”

Lena could barely muster a response when her hand found Kara’s wetness as well. Kara breathed in deeply through her nose. Through her fuzzy mind Lena wondered what she should do next but that thought was quickly erased with a swipe of Kara’s fingers.  Some part of her brain that was still conscious told her to mirror Kara’s movements. She did and was rewarded was a loud gasp into her mouth. With slow and steady fingers they worked each other into a frenzy. Both could feel the pressure building low in their hips as fire coursed through their veins. Lena fell over the edge first, pulling Kara with her, each swallowing the other’s cries.

They had barely come down when Lena grabbed Kara’s face and pulled her on top of her, needing more. Tears filled her eyes and trailed down her temples.

“I love you.” she whispered.

“I love you.” Kara whispered back.

“I need you.”

“What do you need?”

“I don’t know. Just…you.”

Kara pulled back and gazed into Lena’s eyes. There was something she wanted to try. Well, actually, there were many things she wanted to try with Lena but this was top priority.

“Can I try something?”

Lena nodded.

“Okay. Tell me to stop if it’s too much.”

“Okay.”

Kara kissed her again to reassure her before moving lower. This time she bypassed Lena’s chest and made her way down to her soft belly. Lena threaded her fingers through Kara’s hair as Kara licked and kissed her way around the softness. Lena bit her lip in anticipation as Kara then moved lower. Kara looked up one last time for confirmation. Lena nodded. Kara tenderly spread Lena’s legs.

“Beautiful.” she breathed.

Lena’s head flew back into the pillow as her back came up off the bed as Kara’s tongue swiped through her. It was unreal. She had had previous partners go down on her before but this was…this was something different. Once again she attributed it to Kara solely being the reason.

Kara’s eyes practically rolled in the back of her head. Lena tasted so good, she was an aphrodisiac all on her own. She hadn’t known what to expect as far as taste but she knew now that she would never get enough. And the sounds that Lena was making were positively intoxicating.

Lena couldn’t hardly breathe. Her breath was coming in short pants and a high feminine whine. She was wound tighter than she ever had been before in her life. Kara was relentlessly thorough. Her breath hitched as two fingers slipped in with ease. She could feel Kara moan against her and didn’t know how much longer she was going to last. Kara curled her fingers which made Lena curl her toes. Finally, Kara placed her lips and sucked hard. Lena’s breath froze in her chest as her vision turned white. Wave after wave crashed through her. When it was over Kara placed on last kiss before climbing back up. Lena instantly crashed their mouths together and greedily licked into Kara’s mouth and moaning at the taste of herself. She wanted her turn with Kara but she was absolutely spent. Besides, something told her that there would be plenty of more time for that.

Their kisses turned more languid and Lena shivered against the coolness of the room. Kara lifted her up and pulled down the covers before pulling them back up around both of them. She laid on her side facing Lena.

“I love you, Lena Luthor.”

“I love you, Kara Danvers—” Lena smiled. “—Zor-El.”

Kara felt tears well up at the sound of her Kryptonian name. They both lay in comfortable silence for a few minutes.

“Lena?”

“Yeah?”

“I think I figured out what we are.”

“What are we?”

“Soulmates.”

“Soulmates.”