Chapter Text
It isn't until Lena’s halfway into the line that she realizes coming here might not have been her greatest idea.
L-Corp finally settled the move to National City three days ago and all Lena has been seeing on TV is newscasters criticizing everything they can think of about her and constant reruns of that one hour-long documentary that exposed Lex. She’s more than aware that the city isn't exactly happy that she’s here, and as much as the comparisons with her brother hurt , Lena has long since learned to deal with it, push the resentment away and just accept the fact that they have a right to feel that way.
National City has Supergirl now – an unexpected development that threw half her plans of having L-Corp lay low for a few years straight into the incinerator – and that means everybody is a little bit tense around Luthors.
Lena enters the coffee shop in a hurry, unfamiliar with the layout of the city and so distracted with a call about an incident with a subsidiary in Central City that it was only when she turns it off and looks around her that she notices that almost everyone near her is talking about… well, her.
There is a big TV in the corner, with a newscaster announcing her arrival to National City with barely hidden contempt. The couple in front of her complains about L-Corp’s reputation, and she can see a client further in line pointing at the TV as he speaks with an employee.
Lena feels like hunching into herself, the negativity in the air around her a burden that makes her heart quicken, and her breath comes in short gasps as she starts hyperventilating.
Lena Luthor, huh?
She spins, startled by the voice coming right behind her and quickly sticks her hands in her sweater’s pockets the moment she realizes it had brushed against the arm of the woman behind her.
“What?” She breathes, startled. She is dead certain she had just been recognized and there was a sudden shot of adrenaline as she imagines what could happen in the next few seconds, picturing anything from having to endure verbal assault to a more dramatic rendition of fruits being thrown at her as if she's in a renaissance fair.
“Oh, I was just…” The woman glances at the TV, “I guess I’m a bit excited about her being here.”
“Excited?” Lena can't help but ask, only to regret her outburst a second later and flinch back a bit, desperately wishing nobody noticed it.
That wasn't too suspicious. was it? Anybody would've asked in her place.
“Yeah, she’s pretty awesome.”
Lena glances at her, not knowing how to react to that, and finds herself lost in incredibly sea blue eyes. The woman is blonde, with her hair pulled in a cute ponytail that went well with her glasses, and she wears a cardigan over a science pun T-shirt.
“Why do you say that?” She asks, voice softer as she tries to understand the woman in front of her.
“National City doesn’t have many famous scientists, especially women, and the ones we do have… well, Maxwell Lord isn’t really a guy worth looking up to, y’know? But Lena? I read about that quantum processor that she theorized and it was brilliant! And she also made that water purifier tube and solar panels that are like, ten times better than the competition, and then she sold it all at cost to people who actually needed them. I mean, how more awesome than that can you get?”
Lena blinks, hard, and it’s only then that she realizes the woman doesn’t know who she is. Lena almost glances down at herself, to the nondescriptive sweatshirt she’s wearing, hood over a green beanie covering her hair, and the pair of clear glasses she chose to wear because sunglasses were a little bit too cliché.
“So you’re… a fan?” She had met her fair share of Luthor fans, but most of them were only there to glorify Lex’s xenophobia. It is exactly the type of people Lena is trying to distance herself from, and the thought that this woman might be one of them makes her feel a little disappointed.
“Er, not really? I appreciate what she’s done, I guess. I know people hate her because of what her brother did but… She was the one who turned him in, y’know? And ever since then, she did everything to lead L-Corp away from what he was doing. I just don’t think she’s responsible for his mistakes. Oh, right. I’m Kara. Kara Danvers. What’s your name?”
“I’m… Kieran.”
“That’s funny,” Kara blurts out, and red blooms across her face as Lena raises an eyebrow. “My boss calls me Kiera a lot. She says it’s good to keep people on their toes.”
“Kieran is my middle name.” Lena admits a mere second later, immediately feeling an enormous guilt for trying to mislead Kara with her name. “I don’t… I’m not really comfortable with my first name right now.”
“That’s ok.” Kara shrugs, simply accepting it. “So, what do you think about Lena Luthor?”
Lena stutters, wondering if the woman knew who she was all along and this was some sort of test or a joke.
“I… I guess she’s just trying to do the best she can to be a better person,” She answers slowly, eyebrows pinched as she thinks on what she's trying to say. “I… I don’t know if she’s guilty of what her brother did, but I hope she can make up for it, somehow.”
“Oh,”
“Was that wrong? I-”
“No, no, it was perfect! I’m just… That was really sweet. I’m glad to know she has someone in her corner then.”
Kara beams at her, and Lena finds herself reciprocating, unable to stop the shy smile from taking over her face.
“Me too,” She whispers, drowning in blue eyes.
“So, what did you think about that quantum processor you read about?” Lena asks, curious despite herself.
“Honestly, I didn’t think humans were anywhere close from what she theorized. I-I mean, we’re still just now getting into zettabytes, and she’s already two steps ahead creating things we barely thought of.”
“She has to,” Lena half-jokes, a sly smirk on her face. “She wouldn’t be called an inventor otherwise, right?”
Kara laughs.
They end up bumbling their way together to the cashier, and it's only when the man asks what their orders will be that Lena notices it.
“Just an espresso,” She says, and turns to Kara, who looks like she's just now noticing their predicament.
“I- I can order after,” Kara stutters, taking a step back as if she was about to go back on the line, but in an impulse, Lena takes her own hand out of her pocket and grabs her arm gently.
“It’s on me,” Lena tells her, eyes glancing at her throat as Kara gulped with a blush. “Unless… you’re taking it to go?”
“No, I have time,” Kara answers with an awkward chuckle. “But I could pay for…?”
“No. Too late, it’s on me now,” She repeats with a grin, and Kara relents, chuckling.
“So, what will it be?” The cashier interrupts, and both snap out of their quiet conversation.
“A Pumpkin Spice.”
“And a box of donuts,” Lena adds with a nod to the side, noticing the way Kara had hesitated with eyes glancing mournfully at the displayed items. “She’ll pick the flavors.”
There’s a spike of anxiety as the man rings the items and Lena has to pull out her black credit card. It's not anything big, but the premium membership for her bank is very selective and Lena is a little afraid it will give Kara a clue big enough for her to puzzle things together.
Being able to talk to her through this… this veil of anonymity has made Lena feel so much more relieved, and as much as she knows she probably will need to come out with the truth if she wants anything more long term, she doesn't want to have her secret spoiled.
Still, it seems like Kara didn’t recognize it, or didn’t think anything strange of it.
They split off a bit as Kara goes to choose her donuts and Lena walks off to the end of the counter to wait for their drinks, trying to stay as far away from the other patrons as possible, but Kara returns a few moments later, just in time to grab her drink.
It takes everything in her to not flinch when Lena grabs her cup from the barista’s hand and ends up touching his hand with her fingers. It-
The touch isn't the problem. It had been a long time since Lena last lost control of herself, and she’s used to ignoring the flashes of knowledge. But it doesn't mean she likes to know that the cup she holds in her hands was present when a man got his hand stuck in the machinery. Or that the barista got to work late today because of his girlfriend. Or the dozen other little incidents that this cup witnessed.
“So, are you a scientist, Kara?” Lena asks, pushing that restless energy inside of her away as they look for an empty table to sit.
“Ah, no, actually.” Kara shrugs with a fond smile, just a hint of sadness in her gaze. “I wanted to, I guess. As a kid, I always thought that’s what I would do. But no, I’m just a secretary.”
“Kara, trust me, the world wouldn’t run without assistants.” They laugh together.
“Cat Grant certainly wouldn’t. She’d throw a fit that there wasn’t a hot coffee waiting for her in the morning, and then another when there was nobody around to hear her complain.”
“Cat Grant is your boss?” Lena whistles, impressed. “I met her once and as much as I liked her character, I don’t think I want to imagine working under her.”
“True,” Kara chuckles, “But I honestly think she’s really amazing. She… kind of took me in as a mentor, and yes, I’m not gonna deny she’s a bit mean sometimes, but… she can be really thoughtful when she wants to be. I don’t know where I’d be without her.”
There's a pause as they drink at the same time, and Kara offers her one of the donuts.
“And what about you?” Kara asks, taking a bite of her food.
“I’m a scientist, actually.” Lena finds herself admitting, but doesn't regret it when she sees Kara choking, caught by surprise.
“S-Seriously?” She coughs, grabbing a few napkins. “Sorry- But that’s awesome. What a coincidence! What field?”
“Technically it’s mechanical engineering, but I dabble. I had a job related to genetic manipulation once, and a few side projects about vaccine production.”
“That sounds like a lot. Should I ask how many doctorates you have?”
“That’s a question for a third date,” Lena answers automatically, and it’s only after the words left her mouth that she realizes the implications. “I didn’t, I mean, I-”
“I’m sure we can manage,” Kara states in a moment of bravery
It takes a moment for Lena to process what she said, and then there's a harsh exhale, a mix of relief and surprise. The infatuation goes both ways then, she thinks with a smile.
She had been wondering if Kara feels just as impulsive and unbalanced as her, or if she is just brave like that all of the time.
“Yes,” Lena agrees, swallowing thickly, “I’m sure we can,”
And then they smile at each other, that secretive sort of grin full of intention behind it, as Lena sips her drink, eyes staring deep into Kara’s own.
Kara startles, and the moment breaks.
“Oh, shoot!” She hurriedly gets up, grabbing her purse that she put aside and nearly knocking her cup of coffee over as she gathers her things. “I forgot I was going to be meeting with Clark. Rao, I’m so sorry, Kieran.”
“Clark?” Lena asks, feeling an inkling of familiarity. It's a common name, and she knew several Clarks already both in National City and out, but… Kara also worked for CatCo.
“My cousin. He offered to let me tag along one of his interviews so I could see what it’s like being a journalist.”
“I’ll see you later, then, Kara. Maybe… maybe ask you on a real date?”
Kara pauses, ready to leave but unwilling to do so, and smiles.
“I would love that. Oh, uhm, do you need my phone number?”
Lena wants to say yes, but… she wanted to get to know Kara, to truly know her, without any cheats. She isn't wearing gloves, and she's already distracted trying to control her own mind, she wouldn’t be able to avoid the glimpses, perhaps even visions of Kara’s most emotional moments with her phone.
“You’re already late as it is, I can find you through your work, Kara Danvers of Catco.”
Kara nods, a teensy tiny bit surprised, and gives her one last regretful glance before she turns away and runs out, and Lena sighs, staring at her back as she leaves.
With thoughts itching to confirm an hypothesis, it takes a moment for her to check Cat Grant’s account online and locate @K.Danverss. She scrolls through some photos, captivated by her smile in every photo, until she finds one picture posted seven months ago where she was posing with none other than Metropolis’ most popular journalist… Clark Kent.
It looks like Kara is going to be finding out her real name sooner than expected, and the thought leaves Lena with a paralyzing mix of chilling terror and a sort of fascinated exuberance that both freezes her insides and warms her heart.
Entering L-Corp, her company, is one of the most pleasant feelings Lena knows.
She greets the lobby secretary with a slight nod, letting her mind wash over them passively. She doesn’t read their minds – she rarely can unless she’s touching their skin or extending her powers with a hazy mist that nowadays glows a bright green – but she lets herself immerse in the good cheer of her home.
People in her building aren’t always happy, or in a good mood, but she can feel… contentment. In LuthorCorp, the few times Lilian took her there as a kid, she always felt like drowning. The people there felt slighted, rancorous. They didn’t have just salaries, and the environment was always one of competitiveness and ambition.
Toxic, to be precise.
When Lex took over and Lena started working at LexCorp, her floor always stank of that sort of mad dedication. Her colleagues, the other scientists, were all willing to sacrifice anything to get what Lex wanted. They didn’t care about morals, or rights, they just wanted the fame of the discovery.
And it’s true that Lena never got involved with their worst experiments. As far as she knew, LexCorp was legitimate, but there was always this feeling in her head, this ominous whisper that the people working beside her weren’t as innocent as they looked.
So, when she turned the ruins of her family’s business into L-Corp, she worked hard to try and change this atmosphere. She looked not for the smartest person, not for the most renowned scientist, but for the ones that felt peaceful, or honest.
And with that, she found Jess. She found Kyle, the intern from Metropolis, and Mitchel, the lobby secretary. She found people who, surprisingly, didn’t see her just as a Luthor, even if there was an initial apprehension.
L-Corp, from the moment she steps inside the front doors to when she locks herself in her office, feels safe. This is her company, her building, her people, and she can feel that their loyalty toward her is just as strong as her own, and moving to National City didn’t change that.
It’s not so surprising that Lena already considers 252 Ellsworth Street – the Financial District of National City – her home, more so than the empty loft she bought on the west side.
Her secretary is already waiting for her near the elevators to the lobby as well. Jess is holding a more professional change of clothes – Red shirt, high heels, and a blazer suit paired with a pencil skirt.
“Ms. Luthor,” She calls out as soon as Lena is spotted. “Clark Kent from the Daily planet is already here, but he brought a-”
“Ms. Danvers,” Lena interrupted, and Jess nodded with surprise. “I’m aware. She’s welcome to join our meeting.”
Jess nods.
She stops at the 23rd floor first, there’s an out of the way bathroom that she can use to change discreetly, and Jess quickly helps her with the makeup as she scrolls through her email, checking only the most urgent messages.
“Did you get anything back from the investigations?”
Jess purses her lips for a moment, tilting Lena's head upwards so she can apply the mascara with a careful, steady hand. It’s only when she puts the wand down and picks up a primer that she answers.
“We managed to get a partial report from the police on what happened. As well as pull up the blueprints from the prototype engine that L-Corp helped build. There’s a… high probability that this was some sort of sabotage.”
“Damage to the machinery?”
“No, uhm, I asked Miles from accounting to take a look at the videos.” At Lena’s raised eyebrow, Jess smirks. "Trust me, that boy is a genius in his own way. Anyway, he said that the way the explosion was centered at the back…” She sombers, turning to search through her bag for a foundation. “It’s likely that there was a bomb inside. Somewhere after the 20th row.”
Lena isn’t expecting anything different, but the confirmation that she was likely the reason for this disaster puts a bitter taste in her mouth. She had known who was sitting around her, Morgan Edge had made a group chat for the people who bought a seat at the Venture – And as distasteful as it was to be in in the presence of him and Max Lord, even virtually, it was that sort of thing she couldn’t afford to be out of the loop. – and as far as she could find, there was no one from the back rows that had a reason to be targeted like this.
No one, except for her.
“It’s not your fault, Lena.” Jess says quietly, but Lena can’t find it in herself to look at her.
“We both know that isn’t true.” She shakes herself out of the somber mood, tying her hair in a ponytail as Jess looks over her clothes, straightening it out and fixing anything out of place.
Lena glances at the bathroom mirror one last time, appraising herself, and nods approvingly.
“Do you have a copy of that data, anything usable, at least?”
Jess nods.
“Nothing concrete, obviously, but I downloaded the schematics of the ship that L-Corp had access to, as well as the calculations Miles did and some video clips into a thumb drive. The blue one, It’s in your office.”
“Good. Thank you, Jess.”
They return to the elevators, and Jess takes the time to update her on other subjects. The science floors of the building were finally cleared for use, and there was a minor scandal with one of the lawyers, which was quickly solved but might cause some future backlash.
Right before the doors open another time, Lena takes a deep breath. She never had the pleasure of being interviewed by Clark Kent, but she met him before. It was one of Lex’s fundraising balls, before he became… what he is today.
Clark had been there as a courtesy from Lex, but he was completely out of his depth amongst the other one percenters. He wandered around the ballroom with honest naivety and his smoldering grin without a single ploy or subterfuge, captivating the high society with his… purity, for a lack of better words. Unlike every other conversation in that place, talking with Mr. Kent came without any consequences, any secret meanings or quiet judgment.
It was a novelty, and to high society, a curious fascination.
That is, until Simon Stagg tried to subtly goad Lex into causing a scene. Lena had the pleasure of watching Clarke neatly insert himself in the conversation with his awkward manners and both charm the man’s wife as well as absolutely humiliate Simon with a quickfire interrogation that aired out so many of his dirty underdealings that Stagg Industries was forced to move its business to Gotham City to avoid bankruptcy.
Lena knows how vicious Clark Kent can be under that Kansas wheat of his. She understands that beyond that façade of bumbling fool there is a surprisingly sharp mind just looking for a chink in the armor, and she knows how much Lex changed him, both as a friend and as a rival.
She is expecting him to come out with that sort of viciousness only born out of a betrayal’s grief. She is ready for him to come out swinging, no holds barred, and he doesn’t disappoint her.
But she isn’t expecting Kara Danvers looking at her with clear blue eyes and a glint of recognition in her gaze. She isn’t expecting to see her standing there, so clearly trying to make herself seem bigger, more professional, and she isn’t expecting to find herself so intrigued by this woman.
“Ms. Luthor!” Kara is the first to say, jumping to her feet the moment she notices Lena walking by the waiting room. Clark turns from his spot near one of her potted plants.
“Mr. Kent, follow me.” Lena says, already walking past them. Her office is just to the left at the end of the next corridor, and she needs the security, the feeling of control that she gets from being in her own space.
She discreetly slides a finger through Jess’ table as she passes by, looking for anything out of the ordinary, but all she learns is that Clarke and Kara had a quiet conversation about how Lex was before…
Lena tries to hide her grimace, quickly taking her hand back.
“Thank you for meeting with us, Ms. Luthor. I know you have a busy schedule with this new move to National City, but we had some questions about…”
“I’ll save you the trouble,” Lena cuts in, walking through the doors of her office. “There is a perfectly reasonable explanation for why I wasn’t aboard the Venture yesterday.”
“Well, that’s why we’re here.”
Lena puts her bag in the coat hanger, trying to keep her back to them. She can’t squash the ridiculous hope in her heart that Kara won’t recognize her, that she could get through this quickly with sharp words and throwing the evidence at Clark before Kara would look past the make-up and the different posture.
So she keeps herself busy, walks around the office to keep her back to them, pours a drink so she can drag the moment out, and she keeps talking, and talking, giving excuses about an emergency and how she had to cancel because of the renaming ceremony.
It isn’t a lie, all of those facts really happened, but she had decided not to go long before they came to her attention. But Lena can’t tell them she had a bad feeling about the ship. She can’t tell that she literally couldn’t get her legs to move as she was leaving her house because there was something wrong with it. She demanded that an extra check-up be done by some of the Luthorcorp employees that were still involved with the project.
She can’t tell them that the only reason she didn’t go was because her powers screamed at her not to.
“Ah, lucky,” Mr. Kent says with that sarcastic tilt of his head, and Lena wants to throttle him.
“Lucky is Superman saving the day,” She snarks instead, and watches the way he doesn’t react, doesn’t even flinch at the name.
“Not something one expects a Luthor to say.”
She doesn’t know if he really is Superman. Lex never told her, and looking at Clark Kent now, it sounds almost… ridiculous. An idea too silly to even consider. The sort of thing that one scoffs at and jokes, ‘him? Superman? Hah! Tell me another one!’
But at the same time… Well, Lena can’t find herself to fully dispose of the theory. She isn’t even sure if Lex himself knew, if he’d allow himself to consider Superman being a… a human. With a real life, and a real family. But to Lena, that made… sense, sort of. How else could he care so much about the people of Metropolis? How else could he push himself day after day to soar the skies and sacrifice himself over and over if he didn’t love his city just as much as anyone else, if he didn’t have people to care for that might live there?
And it wouldn’t be hard to confirm. A single push of her powers, a single handshake like the one she refused just now, and her powers would reveal the truth. But that wouldn’t be fair to him, whether he was the hero or not, and Lena had long since decided to not root around someone’s past without a good reason first.
“Right, and Supergirl was there, too!” Kara pipes up a beat later, with the same enthusiasm she had pronounced Lena’s name earlier today, and Lena turns to her with amusement.
She is definitely a Supergirl fan, Lena guesses.
“And who are you, exactly?”
She doesn’t mean to sound flirty. This… This is definitely not her intention, but she can’t help but drawl out the ‘you’ and even while keeping her back to Kara, refusing to look at her so she can’t be recognized, there’s still a pull, a thick tension in the air that leaves Lena feeling breathless and excited.
“Oh, I’m Kara Danvers! I’m actually with CatCo, but Clark, err… invited me?”
“I didn’t know CatCo had a science column,” Lena can’t help but say, getting a sudden bout of courage strong enough to make her turn and meet Kara’s eyes.
Kieran! Lena can see the recognition in her eyes, the sudden startle as she tries to comprehend the entirety of Lena Luthor and Kieran as one person.
“They don’t.” Kara answers belatedly, seemingly just as breathlessly. “I- I’m just a secretary, but… you already knew that, didn’t you?”
Lena manages a shallow nod, her heart suddenly leaping at her throat.
“I- Can we just speed this interview along?” She asks, uncomfortably hot all of the sudden and thankfully Mr. Kent takes over, asking leading questions and trying to make her confess to some kind of involvement in the explosion.
“Some steel under that Kansas wheat,” Lena jokes, and it takes her a few seconds to notice the (perhaps) unintentional pun. Clark Kent smiles at her, a polite grimace, but Kara is suddenly shifting in her feet uncomfortably.
So Lena relents. She wants them to understand that not everything Lex did was evil, even if he went mad by the end of it. That she still loves him because Lex had cared for her, before his obsession with aliens. But it takes one glance from Kara, and she finds herself talking about childhood traumas and things she had never told anyone before.
“I’m just a woman trying to make a name for herself outside of her family… Can you understand that?”
“Yeah…” Kara interrupts unintentionally, and Lena’s heart melts . “Lena- Ms. Luthor, I don’t think what happened with Lex was your fault. And I’ve seen what L-Corp has done, you… You really are changing it into a force of good.”
Lena dry swallows, ignoring Mr. Kent entirely as she pursed her lips, suddenly unable to find the words… to explain just-
“You have no idea how much hearing that means to me.” Lena says slowly, and she can see how her attention flusters Kara, how much it affects her.
It’s strange, this chemistry she has with Kara. Unlike her past experiences, she’s not left wondering whether Kara is honestly interested in her, or just what she can do for her. She doesn’t even have to worry whether this sudden infatuation is something only from her part, or if it’s mutual.
It is clear to both of them that they have this pull between them, and Lena can’t even find it in herself to worry about if Kara is somehow doing this to get something from her. She knows she’s not.
It’s perhaps the first time she ever felt like this, that her love isn’t unreciprocated or conditional. Like a puzzle piece just snapped itself in the perfect slot without Lena even noticing until it was there.
“Right, well. I know why you’re here.” Lena tries to snap out of their trance, turning to speak to Clark, who shifts his stare between the two of them with a bewildered expression.
She gets up from her chair, walking to the shelves on the side of her office. There was a transparent organizer holding multiple thumb drives, and she only needed to glance at the cap color to know what it was. Green for the legal documents about the renaming, red about her research into the alien detection device and the innocent blue drive sitting in the third slot.
“...Because a subsidiary of my company made the part that supposedly exploded on the Venture.”
She hands Mr. Kent the drive, and purses her lips.
“Supposedly?” He asks suspiciously.
“I have reasons to believe the explosion didn’t start from the engine.”
“And you have evidence on that?”
“Only if you consider the Scientific Method evidence. I had one of my employees play with the math. The trajectory of the fall, the hole on the plane… They suggest the explosion initiated from within the aircraft and the oscillator malfunction was likely just a consequence of the damage, not the actual cause of the incident.”
“Is there anything else you’d like to mention, you know, since you’ve been so cooperative?” Mr. Kent pushes, and Lena wants to scream. Or maybe defenestrate him with her powers.
Okay, she would never dare to actually do that to someone but Clark certainly seems to want to test that conviction himself.
Lena sighs, exasperated and more than a little irritated.
“Mr. Kent, I didn’t blow up the Venture. I don’t know who did, and honestly, if you’re going to just decide I’m guilty regardless of everything, I don’t really see the point of wasting my time trying to change your opinion. So are we done here or should I call Security?”
Finally- Finally , he relents.
“We're done here. Thank you for your time, Ms. Luthor.”
“The pleasure wasn’t mine,” She snarks, and takes pleasure in making the ‘wasn’t’ sound a little like ‘was all’. A neat trick she practiced at boarding school so long ago.
But when he turns to leave, Kara lingers.
“Go, I’ll be right behind you,” Lena sees her whisper, and despite the suspicious look Mr. Kent throws at them, he allows it.
The moment he leaves, Kara spins toward her, an intense blush rising up to her cheeks as she squinted and stared at her face.
“Can.. Can we please forget I spent an hour rambling about Lena Luthor to you?” Lena can’t help the startled smirk that blooms on her face, and she tries to bite her lip to hold it back at least a little bit.
“I’m not really sure about that, I think I could stand to hear about how awesome I am for a few more minutes.”
Kara pouts, biting back an embarrassed groan. Lena lets her eyes linger over her tantalizing lips, an unattainable desire that draws her into the blonde’s orbit.
“So… Kieran, huh?”
Lena nods, sombering a bit.
“Lena,” She corrected. “Like I said, Kieran is my middle name. I… only ever use it when I don’t want to be recognized.”
“I get it,” Kara says with a soft smile, and Lena somehow can just tell she means it.
It’s not her powers, it’s not Lena reaching into the surface of her mind to judge whether Kara is being truthful or not. It’s just a girl wearing her heart on her sleeve and being so blindingly genuine in her every move that…
That to Lena, who lived her entire life navigating through delicate plots, greedy intrigues and family secrets left and right, is a sort of honesty that feels charming and oh, so refreshing.
They fall into a sort of agreed silence, too caught up in each other's gaze to think of any kind of icebreaker.
There's… something here. A thickness in the air, a force gently tugging them at each other, and Lena can't remember a time she ever felt her chest tighten and her breath shorten from just being in the presence of someone she is infatuated with before.
"Are…" Kara wets her lips, regretfully dragging her eyes up from where she stared at Lena's sharp neckline. "Are we still on for that date? I didn't ruin things, did I?"
Lena laughs, softly, and shakes her head. She can't even find it in herself to deny this attraction anymore, couldn't from the moment they met.
"Nothing's ruined, Kara. I have to fly back to Metropolis tonight but… Tomorrow, 7PM? I know a good Italian place."
"...I love Italians– Places! Err, I'd love to go places with you, I mean… Yes. I mean yes."
It takes everything within her to keep the laughter from bubbling out of her.
"Just as a heads up, I'm easily the awkwardest person you'll ever meet." Kara admits with a sheepish smile, putting her notebook under her arm so she can raise a hand to scratch the back of her neck in embarrassment.
Lena's smile softens, and she nods.
"...I find that quite charming, actually." She admits, and then deliberates for a moment. Decides whether she wants to leave it at that or if she's willing to open up more.
"I mean it," She says gently, deciding to go with the truth. "The people I interact with are mostly cold and analytical. Everything is calculated, every word a plot. But you're… Genuine. You mean what you say, and that… that makes all the difference to me."
Lena isn't fond of being vulnerable with others, with trusting people, but she can't deny that this time was worth it, just so she could see Kara blushing up a storm at her words.
"S- see you tomorrow, then."