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In search of warmth, Lena unconsciously shifts closer to Kara, hand rising to halfheartedly cover the yawn she's far too tired to stifle. Enjoyable as the day has been, filled to the brim with the love and laughter Lena's spent so much of her life longing for, it was still long and she can feel the hours like a palpable weight dragging on her half-closed eyelids. And she's hardly the only one feeling the effects of a day well-spent, not if Kara's slow, even breaths against her back are anything to go by. Lena doesn't resist smiling at the thought that not even Kryptonians are immune to exhaustion.
Speaking of, aa if knowing she's on her mind, Kara makes a sound low in her throat, arms tightening around Lena's waist as if to confirm she's still there.
She shakes her head fondly; as if there's anywhere else she'd rather be.
"Lena?"
She hums, pressing her back more firmly into Kara's chest in silent confirmation that she's still there and still awake. Or maybe 'awake again' is a more accurate description, because she doesn't actually remember either of them laying down. Her eyes narrow slightly in consideration but her sleep-heavy mind provides no real answers, instead confirming what she already knows: the last thing she remembers is curling into Kara's side to watch another of the Kryptonian's favorite Christmas movies. Whatever happened after that is a mystery.
She feels the ghost of Kara's lips on her hair and can't help but smile. "I didn't mean to wake you."
She hums again. "You didn't but you should've," she chastises genty, the words lacking in anything resembling true upset. "I didn't mean to fall asleep on you." Literally or figuratively , she adds with an internal chuckle.
Kara laughs, breath rushing across the back of her neck and making her shiver. "I don't mind, Lee; you were exhausted." She feels lips ghost against her skin and shivers again, though for entirely different reasons. "Did you have a good time, at least?"
Lena smiles, beams really, even though Kara can't see it. "I had the best time," she corrects, and it isn't a lie; it isn't even an exaggeration.
From the moment she'd arrived to find a blushing Kara presenting her with a beautifully tasteful Christmas sweater, to Alex's playful teasing and Eliza's gentle acceptance and encouragement, everything about today had been perfect. It wasn't actually her first happy Christmas but it was her first in a very, very long time and, if that showed in the way her eyes filled with tears now and then, well, everyone had been gracious enough not to mention it.
Another brush of Kara's lips lets her know she's smiling, not that she needs the confirmation. She can hear it in her voice, feel it in the way her arms tighten around her. "I'm glad."
They stay like that for a while, content to just be here, together, basking in each other's presence and the residual warmth of the day before Lena just has to ask, "How long was I asleep?"
"Hmm," Kara hums in consideration and Lena doesn't have to look at her to know there's a thoughtful krinkle forming between her eyebrows. "I'm not sure. About...two hours, I think?"
Two hours? Lena can't help blinking in surprise. It wouldn't mean much to most people, she knows, but sleep is an ever-elusive concept for the youngest Luthor and she rarely has the privilege of drifting off for one hundred and twenty consecutive minutes without first having to drive herself to the brink of collapse. It isn't healthy but it's the way it is, now, and she's learned to make her peace with it (and to take naps whenever she can manage to find the time to do so. There is a reason her office has a couch, after all).
The more she thinks about it, though, the more she realizes she's been sleeping more often, lately. More often and for longer periods, leaving her feeling more relaxed, energetic, and - dare she say - even happier.
And the only reason she can think of to explain it is the woman pressed against her.
Turning in her embrace, Lena meets Kara's eyes for the first time in what feels like an eternity, smiling softly all the while.
Kara is already smiling but it widens the longer she looks at her. "What?" she asks, voice pitched low and laden with curiosity.
Lena doesn't answer, at least not in words, closing the small space between them to claim that smiling mouth in a soft kiss.
Kara's hand slides from her waist to settle on her jaw, her touch achingly delicate as she kisses her back.
Again the moment settles, stretches, between them, neither woman pushing for more or interested in stopping.
It only ends when Lena runs out of breath and is forced to pull away in order to catch it. She makes the mistake, though, of meeting Kara's eyes and the sight of them, so full of love it's like they're lit up from the inside out, leaves her breathless all over again. "Take me to bed?" she asks, cheeks flushing as she says it because, despite the kiss, she really is exhausted and she didn't mean it quite the way it sounded.
But Kara, sweet beautiful Kara, doesn't tease her, doesn't push or question. No, all she does is smile and nod, understanding every word, even the ones Lena doesn't say. And then, before Lena's senses can even comprehend that she's moved, a burst of super speed has her kneeling on the other side of the couch. She eases her arms between her and the cushions - one at the bend of her knees, the other supporting her back - and stands with her in her arms like she weighs nothing at all. And even though Lena knows Kara has super strength, that to a Kyptonian who regularly tosses around buses and aliens three times her size like they're balls of tissue paper she really does weigh nothing, she can't help the way her heart jumps at the ease with which she lifts her.
"I kind of love it when you do this, you know," Lena admits in a rush, cheeks darkening in time.
And Kara, ever the surprise, offers her a wink and a smile that's just a little too crooked to be anything but mischievous. "I know."
Kara only takes a step or two before Lena loops her arms around her neck and, unnecessary though it is, it does give her the opportunity to press that much closer, eyes fluttering closed as she's drawn in by the steady beat of her girlfriend's heart. "I love you."
Warm lips press to her forehead and she can't help but smile shyly at the quiet, "I love you too, Lee."
Lena doesn't find out until the next morning that, despite how short of a trip it is, she still managed to fall asleep long before making it to the bedroom.