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"What do you mean you don't like Christmas?"
Kara asked in a bewildered tone. Lena had just dropped this bombshell on Kara after they had started discussing their Christmas plans in their apartment. Christmas was only a couple of weeks away so Kara had been talking about it non stop.
"Look Kara, it's not that I don't like Christmas. I just don't feel the same way about it as you do," Lena said in a reassuring tone. "I know how much Christmas means to you and that's one of the things I love about you. For me, there's just not that many happy memories from Christmas time."
"Oh Lena, I'm sorry. I didn't even think about how hard Christmas must have been for you growing up," Kara apologised.
"It's okay." Lena squeezed Kara's shoulders while saying this. "For me, Christmas was just another chance for my family to pretend I didn't exist. And as far as friends were concerned, no one wanted to talk to the new girl in school when they found out her last name was Luthor."
"I guess I really can't understand growing up like that." Kara couldn't stop thinking about Lena's lonely upbringing.
"My whole life I've had people who care about me. My parents took care of me on Krypton. Alex has been looking after me since I landed on earth. Eliza and Jeremiah raised me like I was their own daughter. Even the kids in Midvale High made me feel welcome."
"I never had that," Lena said, glancing down at the floor. "And I'm not trying to make you feel guilty, Kara. I just want you to know that Christmas was never special for me. At least, not until I met you."
"I'm sorry it took you so long to be happy at Christmas." Kara felt like she could cry right there and then. "I wish I could have been there for you back then."
"You're here for me now," Lena answered. "That's all that matters."
"Well this year we can do whatever you want. I want to make Christmas all about you." Kara's determined tone made it clear to Lena that this was a serious matter.
"Are you sure?" Lena asked. "I know how important Christmas is to you. Alex told me about how you used to throw tantrums if everything wasn't perfect enough."
"I was a child!" Kara had become a little defensive. "Every kid wants their Christmas to be perfect."
"I understand that." Lena was trying to tread carefully. "Except Alex told me this still happened recently. I heard you made quite a fuss the Christmas before I showed up in National City."
"In my defense, I had eaten way too many candy canes and was coming down from a really bad sugar rush." Kara's tone made it clear she was trying to save face in front of Lena. "Alex was trying to tell me that Die Hard was a Christmas movie too."
"It is darling," Lena cut in.
"Traitor!" Kara exclaimed. "I thought you'd be on my side."
"I'm always on your side. Even when you're wrong." Lena had said the last part quietly but not quiet enough for Kara not to hear her.
"Now I know what you and Alex talk about when I'm not around," Kara said while shifting in her seat.
"We don't just talk about you," Lena was attempting to ease Kara's mind a little.
"Not sure I believe you," Kara teased "but we should really be talking about our Christmas plans right now."
"Well, if you really want to know what I want to do for Christmas," Lena's brow furrowed a little while she thought. "I just want to spend Christmas with you, at home. No party, no friends, no Christmas game night. Just me and you together."
"Of course we can do that." Kara had expected a lot more demands. "I'm gonna give you the best Christmas ever."
"You don't have much competition from my other Christmases so you should be fine," Lena laughed back.
A few weeks later and the big day was finally here. National City had been transformed into a winter wonderland. Every street sparkled with hundreds of Christmas lights spread far and wide. All the houses were decorated with extravagant lights and displays. Each one trying to outdo the other.
Kara and Lena were in the living room of their apartment sitting on the ground beside their Christmas tree.
Lena was wearing black silk pajamas that she insisted were worth every penny she spent on them. Kara, on the other hand was wearing bright red fluffy Christmas pajamas that said 'Tree Rex' on them and had a picture of a T-Rex covered in lights and baubles.
Lena was in her bare feet while Kara had pulled out her silliest pair of Christmas socks. She had more pairs than Lena could count so picking the Christmas day pair had been a big decision which she didn't take lightly.
In the end, she had finally decided on a green pair that said 'Donut Worry! It's Christmas Time!'. As well as this, there were loads of Santa faces all over the socks with pictures of donuts beside him.
Kara had insisted that Lena open her presents first. There was a pile of presents under the tree with Lena's name on them. Kara had put love hearts and kisses beside Lena's name on each gift.
"Open these five right now!" Kara said excitedly.
"Why these five?" Lena asked.
"No reason," Kara lied. "I just think you should open these five gifts from me. In this particular order." Kara arranged the gifts in a line and pointed to the first one.
"Okay then," Lena said through laughter. "If it's that serious." Lena started opening the first gift while Kara looked on expectantly. "A notepad and pen? This must be for when I need to take notes in the lab."
"Well it is but it's also a little more special than that." Kara smiled a bit when she said this. "It's not just any notepad and pen. It's the notepad and pen I had on me the first time we met."
"You kept it?" Lena asked.
"Of course," Kara looked proud of her gift idea. "The day we met was one of the most important days of my life. I never want to forget it."
"Aww Kara, that's so sweet." Lena looked like she was about to melt.
"Well if you think that's sweet, wait til you open present number two." Kara pointed at the gift the same way a game show presenter would show the contestant the top prize to be won.
Lena opened this gift a lot faster, head spinning with thoughts of what it could contain. "A new lab coat? That's perfect, thank you. I've gone through so many recently. Of course, the fact that you keep ripping them off me doesn't help."
Kara blushed a little. "I'm not the one who owns more low cut tops than anyone else in National City."
"So it's my fault?" Lena asked in a mock offended tone. "Now I know why you really like visiting me in the lab."
"It's not actually a new lab coat." Kara sounded excited now. "It's the lab coat you wore when you helped Sam to understand how she kept transforming into Reign. You did so much for Sam during that time. You do so much for all of us every day. Especially for me."
"Are you trying to make me cry?" Lena had the lab coat in her arms and was holding it to her chest as close as was humanly possible.
"I'm just being an amazing girlfriend," Kara laughed. "Now, open up gift no 3!" Kara held up three fingers to Lena and waved them around in the air.
Lena tore through the paper to find an Agent Liberty mask.
"Before you ask," Kara started, "the significance here is that I couldn't have stopped Agent Liberty or The Children of Liberty without you. Also, the mask felt appropriate because I still hadn't revealed my true identity to you."
"Kara, I forgave you for that so long ago." Lena pulled Kara in close beside her on the floor. "You know that right?"
"I know," Kara said, muffled a little by Lena's embrace. "I just want you to know that I never stopped thinking about that decision."
"It's okay," Lena reassured her. "I know exactly who you are now. You're the woman I fell in love with."
"I fell in love with you first," Kara countered.
"Debatable," Lena muttered under her breath.
Kara then picked up Lena's next gift and dropped it in her hands. "Less talking, more opening. Present number four here we go!"
Lena tore through another set of paper to find an Obsidian Platinum virtual reality contact lense. "I think I know why you gave me this one." Lena rolled the lens around in the palm of her hand. "This was when we stopped Leviathan together."
"Pretty much," Kara answered. "I couldn't have stopped them without you though. It was your technological expertise that helped me to project myself in front of all those users. The only reason I was able to deliver my message of hope to them was because you were beside me."
"It was also the first time we worked together with me knowing your real identity." Lena gazed up at the gift and looked at Kara. "I felt like I had really found my place, helping you and helping Supergirl at the same time."
"I was so glad you finally knew." Kara handed Lena the final present. "Now it's time to open the last one!"
Lena didn't hesitate, the wrapping paper was destroyed in a matter of seconds. All that remained was a magic set that was clearly made for children.
"Oh, I get it. This gift is you telling me you're grateful for my magic and how I used it in our fight against Lex and Nxyly." Lena shook the box around in her hands a little.
"You're half right." Kara bit her lip a little. "It's also me telling you how much it meant to me when you told me about your magic before anyone else. You found out this earth shattering truth about yourself and you trusted me with it."
"I knew you would have the best advice for me." Lena smirked a little when she said this. "You always know how to make me feel better. I do have a question though. Why was it five presents anyway? That feels like a very specific number."
"If you must know," Kara paused for a minute. "The five presents are for the five years I've known you. Each present is from a different threat that you helped me face. I wanted these presents to remind you of how important you've been to National City over the past five years. How important you've been to me. These have been the best five years of my life and that's all because of you."
"Kara, that's the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me." Lena's lip quiver indicated that she was on the verge of tears.
"You've meant so much to me since the first day I arrived in National City. I was so lost before I met you. You were the first person who saw me. Just me, not the spoiled rich girl with the bad family name. Not the sister of a madman destined to follow in her brother's footsteps. Just Lena."
"If I'm the first person who saw you, you were definitely the first person who saw me completely." Kara was trying to hold back tears of her own now. "I hadn't even been with a woman till I met you. You were my friend at first, then my perfect partner at game night. And now you're the love of my life."
"You're the love of mine too." Lena said while holding back tears of her own. "I'm just so glad we found each other."
"Speaking of finding things," Kara started. "I still have one more surprise for you."
"How many presents did you get me?" Lena asked.
"This one is a little different." Kara winked at Lena when she said this. "Just close your eyes okay."
Lena closed her eyes and felt herself being lifted by Kara. She was so familiar with the feeling of flying in Kara's arms at this stage that this didn't even worry her. She even made sure to keep her eyes closed for the whole journey. It was only when Kara said "Okay, you can open them now," that Lena was finally able to take in her surroundings.
Lena couldn't believe what she saw next. Suddenly, she was standing in the middle of Dublin City Centre with Kara by her side. O'Connell Street was glistening under the glow of Christmas lights.
The Spire pierced the morning sky while jolly people passed underneath it wishing "Merry Christmas" to everyone they met. Everyone was wearing their ugliest Christmas jumpers and there was a feeling of goodwill and magic in the air.
"You brought me to Dublin?" Lena asked excitedly.
"It is your home after all." Kara shrugged when she said this to try to downplay the gesture a little. "I figured, if those scones I brought you from Dublin made you so happy, I may as well do you one better and bring you to Dublin."
"Kara, I don't even know what to say. This is perfect!" Lena looked around the city, eyes wide with amazement. "Being back in Dublin brings back so many memories of me and my mother. Every year in December, she would take me Christmas shopping and we would spend the whole day in town. Some of my best memories with her were made right here."
"I know," Kara beamed. "That's why I brought you here."
"Thank you Kara," Lena put her hands in her coat pockets. Lena was also wearing a hat and scarf, and gloves that hadn't been there before. "Wait a minute, did you dress me when I had my eyes closed?" Lena asked.
"Guilty." Kara held her hand up in the air. "I didn't want you to be standing in the middle of Dublin in your pajamas in broad daylight. That would be really embarrassing. And you would have been freezing too."
"You're right, that would be so cold, and embarrassing." Lena laughed as she said this. "I think you're forgetting something though."
"I am?" Kara inquired. "I gave you every present though." Kara then looked down to realise that she hadn't remembered to dress herself before making the trip.
She could see onlookers staring at her as she stood in the middle of the crowded street in her bright red pajamas and Christmas socks. "Oh my god, this is so humiliating," Kara squealed.
"If it helps, I think you look adorable like that." Lena couldn't help herself here. Kara was starting to turn the same shade of red as her pajamas.
"I'll be right back," she said while trying to look away from the crowd of people staring in disbelief.
In a matter of seconds, Kara ran out of sight and flew home to make herself more presentable for the outside world. The crowd lost interest after Kara had run off and went back to their business.
Lena then saw Kara walking towards her, fully dressed this time. "Well that was a nightmare." Kara had put on a winter coat and paired it with a woolly hat, scarf and gloves.
"I enjoyed every moment of it." Lena was still laughing a little.
"On a more serious note though," Lena started. "I love that you brought me to Dublin for Christmas. I want you to know that. When I said I wanted to spend Christmas at home though, I didn't mean Dublin. I meant spending Christmas with you. You're my home, Kara. Home is wherever you and I make it."
"That's the best thing anyone has ever said to me." Kara's voice cracked a little when she said this. "I guess if you didn't mean Dublin we should just go home now."
"I don't think so." Lena moved herself closer to Kara. "If we're in the greatest city in the world, we might as well enjoy it."
"Greatest city in the world? Really?" Kara asked while looking at the city that surrounded her.
"You know I'm right darling." Lena adjusted her scarf when she said this.
"Let's just agree to disagree," Kara said while holding Lena's gloved hand in hers.
"One day in this city and you'll change your mind," Lena whispered as she walked down O'Connell Street with Kara by her side.
Kara and Lena spent the rest of the day wandering around the city. Lena showed Kara the sights while Kara looked and listened in wonder. Lena helped Kara to discover all of the best things about Dublin, while Kara helped Lena to discover all of the best things about Christmas.