Work Text:
A quiet laugh is the only sound that alerts Lena to the fact that she’s not alone. She looks up to find Supergirl standing in her balcony doorway, a smile on her face.
The sight spreads warmth through Lena’s chest.
“Is there something I can help you with, Supergirl?” Lena asks, turning in her chair, hands clasped across her stomach, an eyebrow raised, even if the effect is lost due to the smile on her own face.
“I just stopped by to see why you were working so late. I can see now that you’re not.” Kara nods her head at Lena’s computer screen.
Lena laughs too, she’s been caught, but she’d also needed a break from the reports she’d been writing. “When my best friend sends me countless videos of cute dogs, I have to watch them sometime. But you’re right,” she says, slipping her feet into the heels under her desk and standing. “It is late, much later than I should be here.” She turns off her computer and gathers her belongings. Kara steps behind her desk and picks up her blazer, Lena stepping into the item of clothing that Kara holds out for her, butterflies swirling in her stomach at the gesture. “Are you finished for the evening too?”
“I…”
“Kara,” Lena admonishes, turning to face her. “Even superheroes need to rest too.”
“I know, there was actually, something…I ahhh…” Kara stumbles over her words, a hand reaching up to adjust glasses that aren’t there.
“Hey,” Lena says quietly, all joking from before gone as she looks into nervous blue eyes. “Is everything okay?”
Kara nods, her throat bobbing as she swallows. It’s such a contrast, to see Kara like this, but dressed as Supergirl, her shoulders slouched in a way they aren’t usually while in her suit. “If it’s not too late, can I show you something?”
“Of course.” Lena would say yes to anything Kara asked, especially when paired with a hopeful smile. “Now?”
Kara nods. “But not here.”
Lena pulls her phone out of her pocket to text her driver, let him know she’s ready to leave the office since apparently they’re going somewhere but she hasn’t even unlocked her phone when Kara’s hand over hers stops her.
“We can drive, but it’ll take a while. Can we fly instead?”
“Oh I see how it is,” Lena laughs. They both know she’s not overly fond of flying. “You ask me something that of course I’m intrigued about and then say the only way to see it is if we fly.”
“I said we could drive too.”
“Okay we can fly, on one condition.”
Kara raises her eyebrow, they both know what’s coming.
“I get to pick the place next time we go out for brunch.”
Kara scrunches up her nose, they both also know it means the menu will involve a lot of kale. “Deal.”
“Okay.” Lena shoulders her bag as she follows Kara out onto the balcony. The night air is cool and she pulls her blazer more firmly around herself. “Where are we going?”
“It’s easier if I just show you.”
Kara looks beautiful, haloed by the lights of the city behind them and Lena pauses for a moment, just to take in the sight, her blue eyes shining with light, even in the darkness.
“You ready?” Kara asks after a moment, arms open in invitation, which Lena easily steps into. Even in heels, Kara is still taller than her, the thought stirring something deep in her stomach while also hitting her with the realisation that her shoes are really not appropriate for flying.
She steps back, slips out of her heels, ones likely to fall off on a flight across the city. She curls her bare toes against the concrete, the cold immediately seeping in, causing her to shiver as she hooks her fingers into the back of shoes.
Lena steps back into Kara’s embrace, her hands slipping around Kara’s neck as she allows the heat that always radiates from her best friend to warm her up slightly.
“You’re cold,” Kara says, rubbing her hands up and down Lena’s back. The touch warms Lena, as much as Kara’s actual warmth does. “What I want to show you is outside, we’ll stop by your apartment so you can change into something warmer, okay?
Lena hums in confirmation into Kara’s neck, pressing in close, enjoying the contact and warmth. Lena may not like flying, but it does have it’s perks, like being pressed this close to Kara, like being able to feel the rock hard body beneath her and press herself in close under the pretense of safety, and now warmth.
Strong arms circle around her back and maybe Lena should say yes to flying more, if she gets to be held by Kara.
They take off slowly, Lena feeling the ground fall away beneath her. Her arms tighten around Kara on instinct and she presses her eyes shut tight.
This is why she doesn’t like flying, they’re up way too high, being held up by only the arms around her back.
“I’ve got you,” Kara says, just loud enough to be heard above the wind. “I won’t let you fall.”
The flight is over not long later, her apartment close to L-Corp, and she’s disappointed when she has to step out of Kara’s embrace.
Before Kara, she didn’t know that one person could feel like home.
She’s used to seeing Supergirl in her office, she often stops by when she’s working late at night or during the day, just to check in on her.
It’s less of a common occurrence to see Lena in her apartment, Kara usually wearing her civilian clothes when she visits.
It’s not an unwelcome sight though.
Lena laughs when Kara makes a beeline for her fridge and maybe she’s not used to the suit being in her apartment, but she definitely is used to Kara.
Lena heads to her bedroom instead, in search of warmer clothes, like she’s been instructed.
She settles on a pair of jeans, a shirt, a knitted jumper (one she’d bought when she went shopping with Kara once and Kara had told her she’d looked cute in it so of course Lena had bought it) and a jacket. Hopefully it’s warm enough, for whatever Kara has planned.
She pulls her hair out too, drops the hairband and clips onto her dressing table as she runs her fingers through her hair, feeling the last stress of the day leave her. She hears a noise behind her and she looks up to find Kara standing in her doorway, watching her again.
Whatever food she’d found before is gone, a small smile of her face. Lena hopes the smile is because of her, but it could equally be because of the food, Lena always stocks Kara’s favourites.
“Is this warm enough?”
“Almost.” Kara walks over to her wardrobe and Lena watches the door curiously before Kara walks out a few moment later. “Here.” Kara reaches out and wraps a scarf around her neck before she pulls a beanie over her head. “There, now you look adorable, and warm.”
Lena’s cheeks heat up, but it’s not from all the layers she’s currently wearing. She adjusts the hat as she follows Kara back to the balcony door, untucking her hair so it sits over the scarf instead.
Lena takes the invitation of Kara’s arms again, doesn’t hesitate when they stop on her balcony.
She tucks her face back into Kara’s neck, inhales the smell that is uniquely Kara, thankful again for this excuse to be close to Kara. Even with her fear of heights, it’s worth it.
Despite the cold wind assaulting them as they fly, Lena finds herself hoping the trip isn’t over too quickly again.
Lena peaks her eyes open as they fly, the city disappearing behind them, making Lena even more curious about where they could be going.
Kara must hear the way her heart jumps at the height. “Eyes closed.” She feels more than hears her laugh.
Lena doesn’t realise they’ve landed until Kara’s arms loosen around her and she feels her feet hit the ground.
She misses Kara’s touch (and warmth) immediately.
Kara had been right to make her dress warmly, there’s more of a chill to the wind here than there had been in National City.
Not that they’ve gone far. They’re at the edge of the city, on one of the surrounding hills, desert behind them. They’re far enough away that she can’t here the sounds of the city in the distance in front of them, but close enough that the view before them is pretty amazing. She can’t tell which apartment building is hers from here, but she can just make the big “L” on the side of L-Corp.
“It’s a nice view,” Kara comments, eyes on the city too. “But I like this one more.” She tilts her head up, looking towards the sky. Lena already knows when she looks up she’ll see stars stretched out in front of her on this cloudless night, much more visible out of the city, without the light pollution dampening the view. But for a moment she just looks at Kara, illuminated only by the distant city and moonlight, and she thinks this beats any view in the world.
“Me too,” Lena says, the words coming out more wistful than she means them too. With great effort, she directs her gaze upwards before Kara can find her eyes on her.
And Kara is right, the sky is beautiful too, littered with more stars than Lena remembers there being. When she was younger, she used to look out her window and wonder what was out there, wonder if someone from another planet could come and save her, take her away from the Luthors.
And then she’d found out aliens were actually real and her childhood dream had been forgotten when she’d found Lex slipping away.
In a weird, roundabout way, maybe her wish did come true, Kara has helped her become separate from her family, helped her show the world she’s more than just her last name.
“I like to come out here, when the city gets too loud.”
Lena looks back over to Kara, finds her head still tilted towards the sky. She reaches out and threads her fingers through the hand that’s hanging loose by Kara’s side.
Her hand is so warm, the heat causing Lena to shiver in the crisp night air.
“Shoot, you’re cold,” Kara mutters, not missing the movement. “I should’ve made you put on more clothes.”
“I’m fine,” Lena waves her off. It’s a little chilly, but nothing too bad.
“Here.”
Lena watches in amazement as Kara unbuttons her cape and whips it off her shoulders, wrapping it around Lena’s shoulders the other way instead.
It’s warm, that’s undeniable, but she’s also not going to pass up on this opportunity with Kara’s cape. She slips it from her shoulders, before twisting is around and pulling it around her neck once more, the end now falling below her knees.
“How do I look?” Lena spins for effect, causing Kara to laugh.
“Super,” Kara winks and now Lena’s the one laughing. “But not why I gave you the cape.” She readjusts is so it’s back wrapped warm around Lena’s shoulders. “Much better.”
Lena grasps the ends and pulls it tighter around herself.
“Did I ever tell you that Kal gave this to me? It was the blanket he was wrapped in when he arrived on earth.”
Lena shakes her head, sinking further into it’s warmth with the knowledge of how much this cape must mean to Kara, and how she’s so willing to let her borrow it.
The both look back out at the city, and Lena remembers Kara’s words from before.
“Can you still hear the city from here?”
“Yeah, but it’s not so loud. And if I focus on the sounds out here, I can almost block it out completely.”
Lena listens, can hear nothing but the wind whistling through the trees behind them, their leaves rustling. She can’t imagine everything being loud all the time. Kara must be able to hear her breathing, her heart beat too. It must be so loud.
“I was out here earlier. I wanted to see the stars and take a break from the city and I was thinking about you, and I realised I wanted to show you this place.”
Lena reaches for Kara’s hand again, gives it a squeeze. “Thank you, for sharing it with me.”
“I want to share everything with you.”
Lena knows that Kara must be able to hear how fast her heart is beating now.
“I want to share everything with you too.”
They’re quiet for a moment, and Lena can see why Kara likes this place. It makes her feel calm. That could also be the woman beside her though.
“The other thing I wanted to show you is this.” Kara points up at the sky and Lena follows her hand to a patch of sky. “That’s Rao, or where it used to be anyway. We can still see it’s light from here, even though it’s long gone.”
Lena’s breath catches, why had she never thought of that before? It’s the same with long dead stars, we can still see their light, since they’re so far away and light travels so fast. Why did Lena never think of the possibility that Rao may still be visible too.
“That one?” Lena asks, pointing to the brightest light she can see, sure there’s a hint of red to it.
Kara nods. “Which means Krypton would have been there.” She shifts her hand slightly to the side. “I wish you could’ve seen it.”
“Me too,” Lena says quietly, her heart aching for the woman beside her, she’s lost so much. Kara’s good at pretending, pretending she hasn’t lost so much, pretending that she’s okay all the time. But Lena has seen it, she’s seen Kara’s anger, she’s seen Kara’s sadness, she’s held her as she’s cried and definitely not been okay.
She wishes she could make it all go away, that she could bring back Krypton, give Kara back her family and stop her from hurting as much as she does.
“My parents would’ve liked you.”
Lena laughs quietly, the statement unexpected. “I’m not so sure about that.”
Kara squeezes her hand. “They definitely would have. You’re smart, passionate.” Kara’s voice turns slightly sour. “Rich, all qualities they look for in a person.”
“I would’ve liked to meet them, to talk science with them, I’m sure I could’ve learnt a lot from them,” Lena says, focusing on the start of Kara’s sentence. She knows firsthand how parents aren’t always the people we hope they could be. “I would’ve also liked to ask them about a young Kara, because I’m dying to know how you got that scar, since you refuse to tell me.”
She feels Kara relax beside her as she laughs. “That’s one story you’re never going to get.”
Lena laughs too. “One day I will.”
Kara bumps her side. “But really, they would’ve liked you, your family would’ve been a favourable match for mine.”
“Match?” Lena asks, although she’s pretty sure she knows exactly what Kara means. This isn’t the first time Kara has spoken to her about Krypton. She hopes her heart doesn’t give her away.
“Marriage. A Luthor marrying a Zor-El would’ve been seen as a good match, with your family’s scientific knowledge and social standing in comparison to mine.”
Lena’s heart is definitely going to give her away as thoughts of Kara and marriage and matching bracelets and a life together fill her mind.
She wonders if Kara knows she wants all of that, with her.
She thinks she might.
“Except,” Kara continues.
Lena can hear the way Kara’s face is scrunched up just with that one word. A look to the side confirms Lena’s thoughts, Kara’s nose is crinkled in what looks like disgust.
“Except?”
“Except my parents would’ve expected me to marry Lex, not you.”
Lena’s own face twists in disgust as she laughs. “Please don’t marry my brother.”
Kara’s laughing too. “Definitely not. I would’ve insisted I marry the prettier, smarter and all around better Luthor sibling.”
“Even if your parents had disapproved?”
Kara nods decisively. “I would’ve married you anyway.”
These are all hypotheticals in a world that doesn’t exist anymore, but it doesn’t mean Lena’s heart doesn’t flutter at the thought of Kara fighting for her, at the thought of Kara choosing her, even if her only other option at the time is Lex.
Lena lets her head drop to Kara’s shoulder, feels even warmer when Kara wraps her arm around her. “Thank you, for showing me this,” Lena says quietly. They’ve been joking a lot but Lena really is thankful for this new part of herself Kara’s showing her.
“Thank you for listening.” Kara squeezes her shoulder. “And thank you for flying here with me, even though I know you don’t like flying.”
“Please don’t remind me that we still have to fly home.”
Kara laughs. But truth be told, flying with Kara isn’t so bad, it’s just that most of Lena’s experiences with flying in recent history, have ended up with her falling.
But Kara’s always been there to catch her.
“Come on,” Kara says, stepping away, her arm falling from around her shoulder. “Let me take you home.”
Lena slips the cape from her shoulders, suddenly reluctant for this night to end, and it’s not because they still have to fly home. She likes Kara opening up to her more, she likes getting to know her more and she likes being tucked into her best friends side as she does.
Kara fastens the cape back around her own shoulders, the red material back where it belongs. Kara opens her arms like she had earlier and Lena steps forward without hesitation, lets herself relax into her best friends embrace.
“You really are warm,” Lena mumbles into Kara’s neck, warm again after Kara had taken her cape back.
Lena feels the laugh against her chest. She could happily stay wrapped up in Kara forever.
They take off slowly, Lena held securely in Kara’s arms once again. She’s definitely going to have to rethink her stance on flying, because as long as she doesn’t think about the fact that Kara’s arms are the only thing stopping her from plunging to her death, being wrapped in said arms is nice.
By the time they land back on her balcony, Lena can feel the tiredness of her long day seeping into her, helped along by the warmth of Kara’s ridiculously toned body.
She’d seen Kara once, in her workout clothes, sports top and shorts leaving a lot of skin exposed. She’d caught Kara in the middle of training with Alex in the green room, sweat dripping down her body, across so many muscles Lena had almost tripped over her own feet in distraction. She did trip over her words when Kara had said ”hi,” her embarrassment made worse by Alex’s knowing look. But in the moment she hadn’t cared, all she’d cared about was the fact that Kara had abs and how she’d very much like to see them again.
Lena trails her hands down Kara’s arms as she steps away, can feel the muscles under her hands as she does.
“Thank you,” Lena says quietly, Kara still close, yet to step away. She can still feel the warmth radiating from her body.
Kara shakes her head. “No, thank you. It’s nice having someone else I can share this with, and I’m glad it’s you.”
“Me too.”
Kara reaches out, her fingers playing with the end of Lena’s scarf. “It’s late, I should go.”
Lena nods. She’s right, and even if Lena doesn’t want this night to end, it has to soon, they both need sleep.
Kara’s eyes drop to where her fingers are tangled in the ends of the scarf. “Do you think maybe I could take you there again sometime?”
Lena catches Kara’s fingers, tangles them with her own instead. “Anytime,” Lena promises. “All you have to do is ask.”
Lena falls that little bit more in love as Kara smiles at her.
“Good night, Lena,” Kara says as she leans forward. She presses a kiss to Lena’s cheek, the touch lingering well past the line of ‘just friends’.
Lena’s cheek tingles as Kara pulls away. “Good night,” she smiles, in a slight daze from the kiss. It’s not the first time Kara has kissed her cheek but it still gets her every time.
Kara floats up in front of her, her cape billowing in the breeze behind her, looking every bit the hero that the world sees. Except for the smile, Lena knows that smile is just for her.
“Brunch tomorrow?”
Lena nods. “At 10? You know where.”
Lena laughs when she sees Kara’s nose turn up in disgust, clearly remembering her promise from earlier.
“Can we at least get ice cream afterwards then?”
“Maybe.”
Lena would give Kara anything she wanted, and clearly Kara knows that too because she grins.
“Go get some sleep,” Lena says, nodding towards Kara’s apartment. “Or neither of us will be awake for brunch tomorrow.”
“Yes ma’am” she salutes, a mock serious expression on her face. Kara lasts about two seconds before she’s grinning again.
But she does as she’s told, and Lena watches her go, watches until she can’t see her anymore. Only then does she head inside her apartment, definitely needing sleep herself now, and already looking forward to seeing Kara again in the morning.
---
Kara does take her back to that spot, more than once. It’s on their third visit that Lena sees a blanket and picnic basket when they land, and they have a picnic under the stars.
It’s not until the end, when Kara kisses her, the taste of chocolate on her lips, that Lena realises it was a date.
It’s the same place, a little over a year later, that Lena asks Kara to marry her.