Work Text:
Kara weaved through the labyrinthian maze of the CatCo offices, dodging desks, chairs, and hurried colleagues, unable to shake the lingering effects of her dream. The faint wisps — indecipherable flashes and giddy emotions — lingered like a haze and fogged her mind. She couldn't recall slipping out of bed, getting dressed for the day, or leaving for work.
The last thing she remembered had been lying beneath her covers, eyes screwed shut, desperately clutching at the details of her dream to save them back from the abyss before they slipped away, forgotten. Now, she wandered through a busy office with an armful of documents and articles that needed to be delivered somewhere or to someone, but she couldn't recall where or who that might be.
This was the fourth dream this week, and the latest in a growing collection of similar dreams over the past few months. The details faded as soon as Kara opened her eyes but she was always left with the same punchy feeling that followed her throughout the day.
Sure, her work suffered in tiny ways, like today with delayed or forgotten errands, and she noticed her colleagues had started to shake their heads and smile as though she was helpless, but she couldn’t help it. The dreams, whatever their content, always left her with an indelible happiness. Even Alex had expressed concern last night after a brute of an alien clocked Kara’s jaw, hurling her fifty feet through rocks and brush, and Kara just lay prone in the dirt, grin firmly plastered on her face.
Rubbing her jaw, Kara chuckled as she sidestepped another rolling chair, narrowly slipping past an editor bounding out of her seat. Sure, the full force of the DEO had to step in last night on her behalf, and she had received a rare, lasting memento from the fight in the form of a sore jaw, but that didn't bother Kara. Like she had told Alex last night, her dreams would erase the pain.
Image fragments of dinner, flowers, candlelight, and a faceless woman flashed in her mind along with persistent happiness. She had been dreaming about a woman. Dating her. They were all different but ordinary, mundane dates — the this-is-new-but-I'm-falling-in-love kind — but Kara knew with certainty that it was the same woman each time.
She stopped. Someone bumped into her from behind. Papers scattered into the air, floating and cascading to the ground. No, it wasn't a faceless, unknown woman. Kara knew her.
Oh, Rao. "I love Cat."
The details began to fill in with quickening clarity. The mystery woman's face morphed into Cat's delicate features, and there was no doubt in Kara's mind that her boss, a woman whose abrupt manner terrified an entire company, was the woman in her dreams. The woman of her dreams. The woman she had slowly, but unknowingly fallen in love with.
Kara snapped out of her daze. Papers still fluttered around her and she knelt to pick them up. The office had fallen into a hush. Glancing around, she noticed everyone had stopped what they were doing, some even mid-stride, and turned toward her, their mouths agape.
She blinked back at them, confused, but her eyes widened with realization that she had spoken aloud. She waved her arms frantically. "No, no! I love cats! With an 's'. Cats with an 's'. You know, the small animal you name 'Fluffy'. I had one once! As a kid. Named him Streaky! Gosh, I should really get another one." Kara cleared her throat. "Cats."
Everyone stared. By their expressions, Kara knew they didn't believe her, but slowly the bustle resumed. Most smirked, but some muttered "cats" under their breath and scoffed. Kara expelled a breath and let her shoulders sink. She worried her bottom lip. How embarrassing. The last thing she needed was someone to mention her slip-up to Cat.
Kara gathered the last of the pages from the floor and stood. She straightened the papers, desperately wanting to erase the last two minutes. With a groan, she turned. Cat stood in the open doorway of her office, a faint smile softening her features as her eyes followed Kara. Or was that just wishful thinking?