Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Art by the amazing https://cuarcium.tumblr.com/

Chapter Text

“Danvers, a word!”

The roaring voice of her coach echoed across the field.
Kara had hoped she wasn’t that late, or that nobody would see she slipped on the field later than everybody else; unfortunately, her absence had been noticed.

She broke off her warming up – which she barely even started – to face Ms. Spitsen.
With her head bowed in shame, she received her scolding.

“I should bench you! You’re the captain of this team, you should be setting the example, rather than being here last! What is your excuse this time? Helping another old lady cross the road?” Ms. Spitsen mocked, even though her excuse had been truthful.

“I had to fix a flat tire.”

“Your own?” she inquired, raising her eyebrow set with scorn.

“For a child who was on her way home,” Kara said; acknowledging that while her priorities should have been with the game, she couldn’t have left a crying little girl standing on the side of the road.

Her coach sighed, “You have a good heart, Danvers. Normally that would make me smile…” her voice was a lot softer, “But not today, Kara!” her stern tone firmed up, “Today, we can become champions early and I’d like to take that title home. The captain of the other team had to turn the lights on when she arrived, that’s how early she was to prepare.” Her coach said, fixing her with a pointed stare. “I’ve heard her give pep talks to her team and I’ve seen her discuss the tactics with her coach. Where’s my captain, Kara?”

“At home, recovering from her-”

“Where’s my captain, now?” the coach interrupted her.

“Here, Ms. Spitsen!” Kara straightened her back, finally feeling brave enough to lift her chin.

“You’re lucky that you are our best player and I need you because you deserve that bench for being late. Prove to me that you earned your spot on the field or I will pull you out. Now, rally your team for the tactics!”

When the captains were called for the friendly handshake and the coin toss, Kara ran towards the center spot.

“Don’t make me lose another Danvers!” Coach yelled at her, slightly worried about her lack of warming up.

The other captain was already waiting when she arrived.

“Show off,” Kara mumbled before she closed the final yards between them.

Her annoyance targeted the perfect captain of the opposite team, who her coach took as an example for her to live up to.
Judging from her long sleeves and the gloves she held in her hand, she was dealing with a goalkeeper.
As a striker, the goalie was Kara’s last obstacle between her and the championship. Intimidation at the first eye contact was a strong weapon to victory.
Kara slowed her step, lifted her chin, and put on her cocky grin. Without batting an eye at her competition she greeted the referee first.
In a fluent movement, she turned, intending to pierce the other captain with her gaze.

Two mesmerizing ocean green eyes greeted her, long eyelashes and perfect dark eyebrows intensified her stare.
Kara’s poise faltered as her eyes dropped to examine the other strong features that made this girl absolutely stunning. A jaw that could cut through ice and full rosy lips that instinctively made Kara wonder how soft they would feel.

“Heads!”

Kara gasped at the movement of the lips, taken off guard by the word she produced.
It took her till the referee confirmed, “Heads, ball or side?” that she realized she had missed the coin toss. Forcing herself to focus, she became aware that her mouth had been open the entire time. She quickly pressed her lips together and frowned her brows.

“We take this side,” the dark-haired goalie said.

Kara nodded as if she agreed to her pick.
When the other captain offered her hand, she shook it automatically.

“Have a good game!” The goalie flashed her a genuine smile.

Heat rose to Kara’s cheeks.
“Y-yeah… You too!” She yelled after the girl who was already running towards her goal with her ponytail dancing from the left to the right. The hand she put in the air was a sign she had heard her.
Kara scrunched her nose to suppress her smile.

Even though they kept their goal clean, Kara’s team didn’t play a good match; they clearly missed Alex as a playmaker in the center. Frustration rose as the last 15 minutes of the game were ticking away.
When Kara finally forced a break-out, she was able to enter the penalty area. As she expected, the goalie fearlessly came forward. If she forcefully kicked the ball at the right time, the goalie would see the ball pass beneath her as she went down. Unfortunately, Kara didn’t anticipate the push in her back that made her crash into the diving goalie.

She managed to reduce the impact on the ground by rolling, moving along with the speed she still had when she lost her balance.

The whistle indicated a foul, probably a card for the one who pushed her, and a penalty.
When Kara rolled from her front to her back, she noticed some teammates already standing around her. Her mind went to the gorgeous goalie who might suffer from an injury. Kara could never forgive herself if she ruined that beautiful face.

The goalkeeper was shielded from her sight by several of her teammates, moving Kara to check on her.
When Kara reached her, she was gasping for air, probably suffering from a blow to her stomach or chest.
Since none of her teammates seemed to function without their captain’s leadership, Kara intervened.
She sat on her knees behind the goalie, forcing her to sit up straight, and pulled her arms backward to expand her chest.

“And breathe in… and out… steady…” Kara guided her through her breathlessness.
By the time the team’s paramedics arrived, the dark-haired girl was already regaining her strength.
With a big sigh, she slumped backward, laying her head against Kara’s shoulder in relief.

“Thanks,” she grinned.

She was sweaty, but her scent was indescribably intoxicating. Drawn to the smell like a bee to a flower, Kara inhaled deeply to let the gorgeous goalie fill her lungs.

“Yeah, I’m okay.”
The girl got up way too soon in Kara’s opinion. Luckily, she reached out her hand to help Kara up.

“Are you okay? You must have made quite the fall,” the goalie asked.

Of their own accord, Kara rubbed her arm only now noticing the dull feeling in her limb.
“Yeah, I’m good,” she nodded.

The green-eyed goalie placed her hand on the sore spot, “Put some ice on that after the game,” she advised with a crooked smile.
She turned away from Kara, squatted down and jumped up three times, cracked her neck from left to right, and shook her limbs loose.

“I’m good to go!” She yelled at the referee.

“Danvers, you take the shot!” Kara’s coach yelled from the side.
This wasn’t a good call. She was still shaken up by her fall, but so was the goalie.
Penalties were Kara’s specialty, so much so that her teammates barely bothered to train themself on improving their skills. Even if Kara had just lost an eye and a leg, she was still the best choice to take the shot.

She placed the ball at eleven meters, shook her body loose, and walked backward.
Her penalties had proven to be unstoppable, this was her moment.
Kara took a deep breath before she opened her eyes to observe the goal and the placing of the keeper.
She stood in the middle of her goal, light at her feet, arms hanging down casually. Kara knew exactly where to shoot. Her eyes trailed to the other captain’s face, she raised one eyebrow and smirked the moment Kara set in her movement.

—------------------------------------------------------------

“You know I don’t approve of your actions, right?”
Lena reprimanded her teammate as soon as she got out of the shower.

“I got us the tie,” she shrugged.

“That’s not the point! She could have been seriously injured, and so could I.”
She quickly got dressed, not wanting to spend more time with her teammate in one dressing room than necessary.

“But you’re okay.”

“Andrea, seriously? I’m still lightheaded and I’m sure the other girl is pretty bruised. That push was totally unnecessary. If you would have just kept the defense closed-”

“Oh come on, Lena! We both know that our defense sucks without Sam, but she had to get homeschooled all of a sudden, which is very suspicious if you ask me. Be mad at Sam, not me, you can’t blame me for trying to keep us from losing.”

Lena bit her tongue, even though she wanted to lash out so badly. She knew why Sam had to leave their private school. Nobody else did, and it wasn’t Lena’s place to say, she had promised Sam.

“Winning a match is not worth injuring someone over.”
“You don’t want to win badly enough.”
“I want to win because we are good, not because we’re willing to kill.”
“I wouldn’t say kill…”
“Andreaaa!” Lena groaned in frustration.

She turned the hair dryer on, not only to dry her hair but also to cancel out Andrea’s ramblings.
The door slammed, indicating Andrea's departure.

Lena turned the dryer off to slump on the bench, resting her head against the wall. Her other teammates had already left, allowing her to recover on her own.

When the door opened again, Lena nearly begged, “Andrea, please leave me alone. We’ll talk again next week.”

“So you don’t want me here to rant about your game?”

Lena chuckled, “I’m glad, you’re here, Sam.”

As if she had never been gone, Sam went through Lena’s bag. “I know you’re good-looking in your jeans and bra, but here: Put a shirt on, sexy!” She threw a shirt at her.

“Jealous, much?”
“Not yet.”
“Since when are you bothered by my lack of clothes?”
“I’m not… But I fear a certain blonde would faint if she accidentally opened the wrong door.”
Lena knitted her brows, “which blonde?”
“The captain of the other team… I saw the way she looked at you!”
“Kara?”
“You already know her name!”
“Oh shut it. You know I make it my business to know my opponents, especially when they stand out.”

Sam handed Lena a bottle of water, “She stands out alright!”

Lena rolled her eyes. “Apparently, she had never missed a penalty, I guess that’s a lie.”

“Nope,” Sam shook her head, “her supporters were shocked that you stopped her shot. You’re a legend now: The one who stopped Kara Danvers!”

Even though the conversation was silly, Lena was thankful for the presence of her best friend. Sam always managed to make her feel better. The previous anger towards Andrea evaporated into thin air, and even her mind was clearing up.

She took a deep breath. When she exhaled it with a soft moan she slumped against Sam, resting her head on Sam’s shoulder.

“I miss you.”

“You took a pretty nasty blow, it looked painful.”

“It was alright.” Lena never dwelled on a game accident since bruises and sore muscles were a part of the game according to her.

“She took your breath away,” Sam joked.

Lena snickered in response while a blush crept on her cheeks.

“She was pretty shaken up as well. I feel kinda bad for taking her perfect streak after a crash like that.”

“I heard she and her teammates would go for drinks at The Tower afterward… You could check up on her; I know you want to.”

“Hmm.”

Sam knew Lena too well. Lena always checked up on teammates and most of the time she even checked with her opponent after a possible injury. She called it sportsmanship, while most of her teammates thought Lena to be weird for that, Sam had always supported Lena's caring character trait.

“How are you holding up?” Lena changed the subject as she continued dressing.

“My mother is threatening to kick me out if I don’t get rid of it… Other than that, I’m… no… I’m not okay.” Sam dropped the formalities, with Lena she could be honest.

“I would have taken you in if I could, but my mother barely wants me to exist so I already have to be as invisible as I possibly can.”

She kneeled in front of Sam, taking her hands in hers, “But… I promise to always have your back in any way I can.”

Sam rested her forehead against Lena’s, “I know… And I’ll always have yours. So, get yourself ready and go get that blonde.”

“What?!” Lena pulled her head back abruptly. “What makes you think I-”

“Cut the closet act! We both know you have doubts about your sexuality. Why not try to work your charm on that pretty blonde who clearly has eyes for you and see where it goes.”

Lena let her mind wander on Sam’s suggestion, concluding that she did not oppose the idea.

“You have nothing to lose, Lena! In a few months you're leaving for college, so if anything goes wrong, you would be leaving that behind as well…”

Lena bit her lower lip as she thought of meeting the other captain again.
“Are you coming?”

“I’d love to, but mom gave me a curfew and I’d like to have a roof over my head for as long as I can. But: I want all the details! Entertain me, Luthor!” She playfully shook Lena’s shoulders.

“Okay, okay, okay!” Lena agreed to her teasing friend with an uncontrollable grin on her face.
She had to admit that she was impressed by the pretty blonde.

—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The tense mood after the game was palpable. Kara didn't feel the need to mix with the teammates who all seemed to fall quiet in her presence.
Thankfully, the phone call with her sister was a lot more joyful; because they didn't win, Alex got the chance to see them become champions in their home game next week.
When Alex asked her about the game, it was impossible to not mention the captain.

"The green-eyed goalie? I remember her, and not only for her skills on the field," Alex said.

Knowing her sister wasn't straight, Kara's heart skipped a beat.

"I mean that she's incredibly organized and kind… Was that a gasp? Do you — do you have a crush on the green-eyed goalie?" Alex teased her.

Calling her sister in the bar was a mistake. Kara might have been wearing headphones, but her blush was on full display for everyone to see.

"What? I – pff… no! She's just…" she stuttered, searching for the right words.

"Very pretty."

"And she smells nice. Her skin is soft. Her voice sweet yet seductive –"

"How do you know all that?" Alex interrupted to which Kara had to tell about the crash they had and how she helped the breathless girl.

"Oh gosh, Alex, I didn't want to continue the match; I didn't want to let her go. I wanted to hold her in my arms. There was something about her that felt so familiar and safe – It wasn't even weird to be that close to her," Kara was practically swooning at the memory of the captain in her arms.

Alex laughed at her. "Sounds like she opened your closet door."

"What do I do now? I don't even know if I'm… you know…" saying out loud that she might be gay or queer or whatever, made it confrontationally real. Kara couldn't handle that yet.

"Calm down, Kara. She's gorgeous, I can't blame you. Now that she pulled your closet door open, just take a look around! And if you don't feel safe, you can always crawl back in until you're ready."

Kara nodded.
A sense of sadness crept up on her. She was so invested in this one girl that it scared her, it had even cost her the championship.

"She raised her eyebrow and my brain malfunctioned, Alex! She stopped my penalty! It was locked in her arms, with no chance for a rebound. It was a perfect save… so impressive," Kara whined. She had to, she felt guilty and couldn't talk to her teammates about that.

"Or she's just a good goalie… Kara, I'm going to bed now. Call me if you need me, if not: I'll see you tomorrow."

With a goodnight and an 'I love you' Kara ended the call.

Words of love were usually sparse, but Kara was so confused that she felt like Alex might be the only person in the world who would understand her troubles.

Having finished her coke, Kara prepared herself to leave. Before she could stand up, the bartender placed a bottle of beer in front of her.

"Compliments from the young lady over there."
He pointed to her at the other end of the bar: the green-eyed goalie.

Fearing that her mind played tricks on her, Kara quickly turned her gaze away. Her being here, offering her a drink could only be wishful thinking.
She adjusted her glasses, a nervous trick she performed to gather herself.
With a second look at the girl, she concluded that her mind did not play tricks on her.
When the other captain raised her beer at her, Kara smiled her teeth bare.

She could always just… look.

"I guessed you were the beer type, but I might be wrong. I can get you something else if you like."

Kara took place next to her on the bar stool.

"No, no, that's okay. I'm just not old enough to drink yet."

"He doesn't know that." She gestured toward the bartender before she took a sip from her bottle. "My name is Lena," she introduced herself, offering Kara her hand.

Kara shook it, "Lena… that's a lovely name."

"And you're Kara."

With that, Kara realized she forgot to introduce herself.
"Wait… You already know my name?"

Lena smirked, "I'm the captain. I research before I meet the other team on the field. Your name stood out… Never missed a penalty, huh?" she raised her eyebrow again.

Kara scrunched her nose and shook her head, "Until today!" She smiled her shame away, holding up her beer to clink with Lena.

"Well, you took a nasty fall…" It was the main excuse for Lena to meet with the pretty blonde. She gently touched Kara's skin, feeling muscles flex beneath her fingertips.
"How's your arm?"

Her touch was like an electric current shooting through Kara's body, weakening her knees.
"Uh… Fine. A little bit painful, but that will heal soon enough." Kara lay her hand over Lena's, holding her trapped on her skin. "And how are you? You took a bad hit as well…"

Pleasantly surprised by the hand holding hers in place, her heartbeat increased. Sam's words echoed through her head: 'Work your charm on that pretty blonde, she clearly has eyes for you. You've got nothing to lose.'
She searched for Kara's eyes, only now noticing how clear blue they were. The twinkle of joy that sparkled in them filled Lena with happiness. Boldly, she said: "What can I say? Kara Danvers, you take my breath away."

Kara squealed with laughter. "Only because you knocked me off my feet!"

"That sounds like I met my match."
Lena knew her words could be taken several ways, and all of them would be fine.
Although, Lena hoped that the feeling was mutual because she had to admit that she really liked this girl.

"But seriously, thank you for helping me. I couldn't manage to catch my breath on my own."

"It was my pleasure to hold you like that," Kara's words came faster than her brain processed, "I mean-"

"Yes, it was." Lena left no room for Kara to correct herself, "It was pleasant in your arms."

After a few drinks, some analyzing of the game, and lots of flirting, a guy in his early twenties started to demand Lena's attention.

"I'm sorry. I was having a good time without you and I’d like to keep it that way," Lena directly put him in his place.

"I’m sure I can offer you an even better time," he smirked, and to Kara's disgust, he let his hand slide down Lena's back. Before he could touch her more intimate parts, Kara grabbed him by his wrist and pulled him away from her.

"Sorry dude, she's with me!"
Protectively, she wrapped her arms around her, shielding Lena's back with her own body.
A bit shaken by her own response, Kara's entire body heated up.
Her action was effective enough to make him back away.

"You're together?" He lifted his chin.

Lena nodded.

"Prove it!"

Lena squeezed Kara's thigh.

"If you're together, you can kiss each other. Show me!" He licked his lips in the excitement of the visual treat to come.

Repulsed by his sexualization and inability to take 'no' for an answer, Kara got fired up.

"We don't have to prove anything to you. What we do is something between us and not meant for the sick, perverted, fantasies of some frustrated nobody!" Kara raised her voice at him. Lena tightened her grip on Kara.

For a second, Kara thought he would start a fight, so she positioned herself between him and Lena to protect her from any possible assault. Instead, he unclenched his fists.

"Filthy, lesbians. You really need a-"

"That's enough, boy. I don't want trouble in my bar. Time to go home before I kick you out!" The bartender intervened.

Kara followed him out with her eyes, while Lena wrapped her arms around her from behind.

"So… are you sure you don't want to kiss me?" She teased Kara's collarbone with her finger, enjoying the closeness this situation brought her.
In the back of her mind a little monster shaped like her mother, popped up, telling her she wasn't good enough for Kara’s attention and that she would surely face rejection. Fortunately, she was so turned on by Kara's protection that she was ready to risk it all.

Kara turned around in her arms and looked down at the slightly shorter woman, realizing how incredibly close their faces were. She could feel her warmth and smell her scent.
"Not for his satisfaction."

Lena trailed Kara's jaw till she placed her hand on the blonde's neck. She leaned in so she could whisper in her ear, "Would you do it for my satisfaction?"

A mixture of anxiety and excitement twirled through Kara's body. Yes, was the answer. Of course, yes. But she had never kissed a girl before. She had never kissed anyone at all. A peck on the lips, sure, but Kara was positive this was going to be more.
This had to be more.

She had to be more.

She slowly turned her head to line her lips up with Lena's.

Her breath hitched.

Those lips that caught her attention from the first moment she laid eyes on them were just one heartbeat away.

Kara closed her eyes, gently moving forward, feeling soft lips connect with hers. It felt even better than she had imagined.

She parted her lips just a little, more overwhelmed than with other intentions, but Lena took the opportunity to explore her lips. Tenderly, she sucked Kara's lower lip into her mouth. Kara could feel Lena's tongue dancing over her skin, making her want to join the flow. Just the slightest connection of her tongue with Lena's lips provided her entrance. The sensation of another tongue against hers was strange for just a few seconds, after that, addiction kicked in.

With a soft, "wow" Lena pulled back for air. "I know!" Kara agreed with her.

"Two beers on the house!" The bartender placed drinks next to them on the bar.

Lena chuckled bashfully, "I don't want to stop kissing you," she admitted.

"We have the entire night!" Kara promised her.

While Kara’s teammates were slowly dripping out as the night progressed, Lena and Kara remained unbothered by the passing of time as they shared touches and kisses.

The bartender scraped his throat for attention, forcing the team captains apart.
"I'm going to close up soon. If you want the last dance or last drink, now is your chance."

Kara beamed, "Dance with me, Lena."

Lena's smile faltered for several reasons; the night was almost over, and "I can't dance."

"It's Salsa. I'll lead, all you have to do is move your body with mine. Like we are one. I have a feeling you can do that," Kara grinned.

It turned out to be as easy as Kara made it sound, though Lena had the feeling that she wasn't moving her body, Kara was. A hand placed firmly against her lower back pressed them close together. Her hips moved with Kara's. The blonde beauty was in full control of her movement, yet, Lena had never felt so free before.

After the song, the lights turned on.

Desperately, Lena searched for Kara's lips again, refusing to part.

"Come on. I'll walk you home," Kara offered Lena her arm when they stepped outside.

Lena took the offer, nuzzling tightly against her.
"I can't go home,” she sighed, “By now, my mother has probably made sure to lock me out. Trying to get in would only get me into more trouble."

Normally, Lena would go to Sam but she's living on eggshells as well at the moment.

Even though she had no place to go, Lena wouldn't have missed this evening with Kara for anything in the world, even if she had to roam the streets alone until sunrise.

She gave Kara one last needy kiss before she pulled herself away.

"Thank you for tonight. I've had a lovely time."

She couldn't bear to look into those stunning blue eyes again, afraid she'd beg her on her knees for this night to never end.
So, she turned away, determined to not look back.
Even if she wanted to, she couldn't walk away, as she was soon stopped by a hand holding her wrist.

"Lena, wait!" Kara made a rash decision on pure emotion. "Stay with me tonight! I have a two-person hotel room I usually share with my sister… but she isn't here."

The few beers made her braver, "I don't want the night to end, yet." She loosened her grip, sliding down to hold Lena's hand and tug her gently.

Lena got the unspoken request and curled back into her arms.

"I promise you that nothing will happen that you don't want."

A fire ignited in Lena's belly. She couldn't imagine a more perfect person to share herself with. "I don't think there's anything I wouldn't let you do to me right now!" She lowered her voice for only Kara to hear. Excited, but feeling perfectly protected by the tall and incredibly handsome blonde, Lena joined Kara for the night, leaving her in the morning.

Chapter Text

Like every end of the school day, Sam stood waiting between the other parents to pick Ruby up.
At first, she got highly uncomfortable with all the stares and whispers from other parents – who were at least ten years older than her – but sadly, after a few years, she had grown accustomed to it.
She heard the speculations surrounding her, she wasn't deaf to judging mouths, about her being: a nanny, the big sister, or maybe even a much younger second wife to the father with a midlife crisis. The first time she attended a parent-teacher meeting and all room for speculations about their family situation vaporized, an audible shock silenced the room.

They could judge all they wanted, but Sam had finished NCU with a toddler on her hip and her best friend cheering in the crowd when she graduated. That same friend who got her an internship at Luthor Corp in National City, with a good social plan to combine her job with motherhood.

When the bell rang to announce the end of the day, parents were allowed to enter the school to get their children and talk with the teacher if necessary.
Fortunately, Ruby was a good student, only her hot-headed temperament could get her into trouble.

"It's career week!" Ruby greeted her mother with great enthusiasm.
Sam briefly hugged her daughter, "I know, sweety. I'll be here on Wednesday to talk about what I do."

Although Ruby was very proud that her mother would explain her work to her class, Sam knew it was mostly the curiosity of the other parents that forced her into that position. They would love to see the teen mom talk about her food stamps and three low-paid jobs, and it was so apparent that Sam knew it.

For the rest of the day, Sam had to listen to Ruby rambling about the cool and sweet lady doctor who would be at the school the entire week. The other careers hadn’t made much of an impression on the 6-year-old.
Sam wondered if she was raising a future surgical genius or if there was something special about this woman that made the normally reserved Ruby lower all her guards.

—------------------------------------------------

Before school, Ruby had already mentioned the doctor three times. None of those rambles were about her surgery skills or medical information, Sam had to listen to a monologue about how nice and funny she was, "And she has pretty brown eyes!"

At this point, Ruby had planted the image of a healing Goddess in her head. Snickering at the idea of an actual Goddess watching over her daughter while she was at work, she decided that the image was quite soothing.

During the day, her curiosity grew for the woman who managed to overtake her child’s mind; she sounded dreamy.
Sam was mostly impressed by the impression this stranger made on Ruby. It had always been just the two of them, which made Ruby timid and rather scared of strangers. The only one she felt free with besides her mother was aunt Lena, Sam's best friend, who had been in her life since birth. Even Ruby’s teachers had trouble gaining the little girl’s trust.

When she stood waiting to pick Ruby up, she wondered if the girl still bounced with the same excitement for the doctor.
Sam caught herself trying to catch glimpses of what happened inside, searching for a white coat and brown eyes, even though she couldn’t possibly have distinguished eye color from her position.

"Mom-mom!" Ruby grabbed Sam's hand as soon as she saw her.
"You have to meet the lady doctor!"

—-----------------------------------------------

During career week at the local schools, residents from National City Hospital were sent out to educate children about healthcare. It was supposed to teach the future surgeons how to inform different age groups, but Alex believed it was a week off for her tutors.

"It's just to get rid of us!" Alex whined to her sister before going for her first day at the elementary school.

"Oh, come on! You're just scared because you don't know what to expect. You'll love it!" Her sister motivated her.

"Says the girl who freaked out before the first training she had to give to children."
"But I do great now!"
"You were afraid they were gonna puke on you!"
"To be fair, one did puke."
"A sign that your training was too tough."
"Yes, and I adjusted to that new information. Hence why you need to practice on random school kids instead of traumatizing your little patients," Kara teased.

Although the sisters loved each other to pieces, their bickering was one of their favorite ways to communicate.

Alex needed less than an hour at the school to discover that communicating with children was one of her hidden talents.
She even enjoyed finding different ways to educate the little humans, starting slowly with putting on bandaids.

Her second day felt even more rewarding when some of the children greeted her, already knowing her name.

Besides her, several parents were invited to give a little talk about their job each day. The parents on Monday were pretty tame, maybe it was the Monday feeling that made them less sociable, but the parents on Tuesday were a whole different cup of tea.
During lunch, the gossip gained traction.
Alex quietly ate her lunch while listening to the parents slandering other parents.
One of them turned to her with information about a girl's mother.

"That little girl who seeks your approval so much, who crawled on your lap during my talk…"
Alex didn't like the tone this man spoke with. She didn't feel like the girl was seeking approval, she seemed genuinely interested, and she was adorable.

"She must see you as a mother figure or something, she has some issues: her mother is about your age. She had her when she was just a child herself."

Amazed by this revelation, Alex responded, "God, that must have been so hard for her."

Taken aback by Alex's kind response the father said, "Hard for her? The slut was a teen mom."

His aggression towards the mother, who wasn't even in the room to defend herself, angered Alex, "Yet, she raised a curious, smart, and sweet little girl. And, which one was yours again? The one who ripped pages out of school textbooks and called the boy with glasses four eyes, right?"
It made sense the child was a bully, his example did nothing less, Alex thought.

"That sweet girl of yours punched my Timmy in the face!" The father raised his voice and expressed his rising anger by slamming his hand flat on the table.

"Well; If your Timmy is living up to his father's example, he probably called her mother a slut and deserved to get punched in the face for that."
Alex sounded calm but firm. Despite her young age of twenty-two, she refused to let herself be intimidated by the man in his thirties.
She felt like she owed it to the little girl to defend her and her mother from this judgemental creep. They probably faced enough obstacles in life without an adult bully and his mini-me pestering them.

A teacher had to step in to stop the turmoil from growing at the guest speakers' table.
Needing space from those judgemental gossiping parents, Alex joined the teacher on the playground to watch the kids.
With her arms crossed in front of her chest, her eyes scanned the area looking for the girl who had just been mocked by the adults.
When she spotted her, the girl turned her head looking straight into her eyes from the other side of the ground.
Alex proudly beamed at the smile she received from the child, it almost made her wonder if she wasn't the one searching for approval from the little girl instead of the other way around.

Feeling a protective streak rise within her, she felt the pestering need to shelter her from the lashing tongues that had poisoned her classmates.

After the bell rang, most kids rushed into the hallway where Alex watched the school day end. At least twelve kids got in line to hug her before they left.

"You seem to be the popular attraction this week," one of the teachers snickered.

Alex chuckled as she embraced the last child in line.
"It's comforting to know that I have that effect on children. That means specializing as a pediatrician is an option for me."
A little bit disappointed that the child she secretly favored didn't come to say goodbye for the day, she stood up.

"Well, you're a natural."
The teacher returned to her classroom, leaving Alex behind with a warm blush on her cheeks.

While Alex was preparing her stall for the next day, a familiar voice called out for her.

"Doctor Danvers, doctor Danvers!"

Alex answered, "Hey Ruby," before she looked up from her display of cotton swabs.

"Look mom, this is she."

Realizing that the teen mom was standing in front of her, she jerked her head up.
This woman was nothing like the expectations printed in her mind by the gossip. She was well dressed, good-looking, and had a soft and friendly face.

"Oh- sorry… Hi, I'm Alex."

Sam shook her hand, "Hi Alex, I'm Sam - Ruby's mom. I've heard so much about you."

An obnoxious nervous laugh escaped Alex's throat, "Only good things I hope."

"Ruby couldn't stop talking about you. You made quite the impression on her."
Sam rested her hands on her daughter's shoulders.

"Well, Ruby is pretty impressive herself. She wrapped her classmate's arm into bandages like a pro."
Alex gave Ruby a wink, both knowing that Ruby struggled at first, but refused to quit until she had it right.
Sam proudly stroked her daughter's hair.

Promising herself to not say anything about Sam's age, Alex said, "So… I didn't see you on teen mom."
She could hit herself for how miserably she failed.

"I didn't see you win the IQ test either," Sam snarled back.

Alex nodded, "I deserve that. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I've never met someone who-"

"Messed up at such a young age? Don't worry, I've heard it all before. Come on, Ruby. It's time to go home."

"No, wait. I didn't mean… I-" Alex couldn't find the right words to express the misunderstanding.

Ruby waved before she ran after her mother, who stopped by the doorframe.
Sam looked over her shoulder, "Really, Alex. It's okay."
She smirked.

Sam secretly enjoyed the stunt she pulled on the poor doctor. She meant so well, but her choice of words was awful. Despite her failed attempt at communication, Sam recognized a friendly soul when she saw one. She had dealt with so much judgment and people who looked down on her, that she could recognize those who meant well.

Alex meant well.

"What's funny?" Ruby asked.
Sam wasn't even aware of the big grin she was wearing on their way home.

"Nothing special, sweety. Just some grown-up stuff."

—------------------------------------------------

Groggy from a restless night, Alex stumbled into the living room she shared with her sister.

"Wow, who danced on your grave last night?"
Kara – who was up and shining, as always – had made it her task to prepare a proper breakfast whenever they had the chance to eat together.

Alex slumped into the seat at the table, where Kara presented her with coffee, eggs, and bacon.
"I barely closed my eyes. I kept going over the stupid thing I said to Sam."

"The one who wasn't on the TV show teen mom?" Kara dryly asked before she stuffed her mouth.

"Don't remind me." Alex dropped her head to her hands. "I really didn't mean it like that. I don't want her to think I'm like those other judgemental jack... asses. You know what they call her?"

Kara fumbled with her glasses and nodded, they had a long conversation about this last night.

"I would never! I respect her. She might have been a mother at a young age, but she's so much more."
Triggered by the injustice Sam had to face daily, Alex slammed her fist on the table.

"Who are you trying to convince?" Kara asked as she continued her breakfast, unbothered by her sister's fiery mood.

Alex took a deep breath.
The term 'teen mom' was indeed printed so thick on Sam's forehead, that Alex couldn't ignore it if she wanted to.

"I heard she raised Ruby all on her own and that's-"

"Do you have a crush on her?" Kara interrupted.

"What? No! Just because she's good-looking and impressive doesn't mean I have a crush on her. It's just… I don't want her to think that everyone is thinking the worst of her."

"Tell her that! And eat your breakfast." Kara shoved the last crumbs in her mouth before she cleaned her side of the table.

"I don't know if I will see her again," Alex whined.

"If you do… just apologize. Your intentions are good."
Kara rushed back towards Alex with her gym bag in hand to squeeze Alex's shoulder. "You'll figure it out." And kissed the top of her head.
"See you later."

"You home for dinner tonight?"
"Yup."
"I'll cook!"
"Great. Bye!" Kara closed the door behind her.
"Bye," Alex said even though she knew her sister wouldn't hear it.

—-----------------------------------------------

Sam came prepared with pictures of LuthorCorp products and a PowerPoint to show. Translating her job to be understandable for children might have been the hardest she ever did. Luckily, she was allowed to take Ruby with her to work once in a while. By picking her simple children's brains and practicing the education on her daughter, Sam had prepared herself.

After handing Ruby over to her teacher, Sam went to the teacher's lounge where the parents would gather for coffee and instructions from the headmaster.

She figured that she would probably see the doctor again. Thinking back, she might have been a little too mean in her teasing. Sam could do that when she felt comfortable with someone, the problem was that this doctor didn't know that.
She had treated her as she would treat her friend.
Given the hostile environment she was in, she could use a friendly face today.

Alex already sat at the table, with her back turned at the door. Thankfully, a chair next to her was empty.

"Goodmorning, Doctor Danvers. Is this seat taken?"
Sam gently touched Alex's upper arm to get her attention.

Startled by the sudden touch and hearing the voice she thought she would never hear again, Alex jerked her head up.
"Yes! I mean no. I mean, you can sit… it's free."

With a chuckle, Sam took place; “I didn’t plan on paying for a seat.”
Alex shook her head at her dumb response, nervously looking at her coffee.

Sam noticed how many eyes peeked at her, she could feel their judgment burning anxiety into her.
In her attempt to change her mind, she focused on the only person in the room who made her feel welcome.

To get the doctor on her side during the day, she should rectify first, "So, about yesterday-"

Alex dropped her arms on the table as she turned to face Sam.
"I am so sorry! I never meant to offend you. I'm actually very impressed by you and how you raised such a wonderful little girl."
She wished to say so much more, but she shut her mouth before something came out to mess up her entire apology.

The compliment about her child made Sam blush, it was her favorite compliment to get and the only one she would take.

"It's okay, Alex. Truly! I was joking yesterday, I never meant for you to feel guilty."

Weight fell off Alex's shoulders. She had lost sleep over her failed joke, worrying that Sam felt humiliated. Luckily, none of that was true.

Aware of the whispers around her, Sam lowered her voice so only Alex could hear her confess, "I know people are talking about me, and I- I could really use a friend today."

Alex's mouth dropped ajar as she processed Sam's request.
"Y-yeah. Yes, of course!" She smiled. "I've got you!"

During the school day, Alex and Sam acted like they had been friends for years. They searched for each other when they had nothing to do and shared fun experiences about their day. During Sam's presentation, Alex was there to support her. When Alex needed a victim for her demonstrations, Sam was happy to volunteer, earning her a lolly in the process.
Alex's presence turned this day – Sam looked up against – into a nice day away from the office.
They even found a common hobby they used to share.

"So, you live with your sister?" Sam asked.
"Yeah. She has to travel a lot, so she's away half of the time. My sister is a professional soccer player." Alex proudly talked about her sister whenever the conversation allowed her to.
"No way! What team?"
"SC National City. She used to be the striker, but there's a lot of competition for that position, so now she's training to specialize in the midfield, which is funny because that used to be my position when we played on the same team in our high school years."

Even though Sam was highly excited, she felt a little bad for never having heard of Alex's little sister, for SC National City wasn't the major league, that much she did know.

"That's so cool! I used to play center back. Unfortunately, I had to quit when… You know." She looked outside the window, where Ruby was playing during the break.

"You had to give up a lot, didn't you?" Alex softly concluded.

Sam nodded, "I had to leave the team. My mother kicked me out, lost most of my friends and I lost my scholarship. If it wasn't for my best friend, I don't know where I'd be now. She supported me any way she could, mostly financially since she still lives in Metropolis."

"You seem to miss her?"

"We call at least three times a week. Sometimes for just a quick five minutes, sometimes for hours. But it's always nice to see her."
Sam could never voice how much she missed having a friend close. Being just her and Ruby could get lonely sometimes.

"But I wouldn't change her for the world."
Sam waved at Ruby, who tried to peek inside the teacher's lounge.

The end of the school day came too soon. Unfortunately, Alex was called away for an emergency of a bleeding nose, causing her to miss thanking Sam for the best day of the week thus far.

—--------------------------------------------

"You could use a friend in National City, Sam. I can only do so much, but having a friend close by would be good for you."

Sam called her best friend to vent about her day, as soon as she put Ruby to bed. Ordering her thoughts through conversation helped her cope with the lonely existence of a single mother with a small support system.

"I've always been fine on my own, Lena. It was nice to have a friendly face supporting me without judgment."

"Negative judgment!"

"Negative judgment."
Sam took the correction, for Alex was indeed judging her, even though the outcome was more respect instead of less.
"Anyway, when are you moving here? Ruby's almost a teenager and you're still stuck in Metropolis."

Lena laughed since Ruby was only 6 years old, "I wish I could, but my brother still needs me here. Once I climb up in the company, I plan to take over the NC location."

"Your brother needs you so he can take credit for your work," Sam mumbled.
Lex wasn't a nice boss to work for, but the way he treated his little sister bothered Sam more than anything. Only Sam seemed to find his behavior problematic; Lena takes it, dances around it, and gets back up every time he knocks her down. She's so used to the toxicity that she honestly believes that he's a good brother.

"Sam," Lena sighed softly.
They've had this discussion before and it always killed the mood.

"I know, I know."
Sam sighed.
"One day, we're gonna rule this company in National City together. And you will get all the recognition you deserve."

"I appreciate that." Lena joked.
Sam had avoided a heated discussion about the Luthor family.
"Don’t make the same mistake I did. Just get her number and keep in touch with her!"

—----------------------------------------------------

Alex chopped the vegetables when her sister came home, slamming the door behind her.

"Don't talk to me till I'm done with my shower!" Kara yelled.

She was usually the light of the two of them, but when she was rubbed the wrong way, Kara could explode into a temper.
After many fights and hurt feelings, the sisters found a way to deal with those overwhelming emotions.
Alex knew very well to leave Kara alone until she spoke to her first.

To be honest with herself, Alex was disappointed, she wanted to ramble about the fun day she had, but Kara's story came first. There would be room for joy afterward.

Alex ate her dinner on the couch as she watched TV, while Kara strolled out of the bathroom dressed in her pajamas with her hair still wet. She slumped next to Alex on the couch without getting herself food.
Kara not eating was a bad sign, she usually ate double to triple the amount Alex ate.

Peeking at her sister from the corner of her eye, Alex had to convince herself to wait for Kara to start talking.
"They took Edge Global as our new sponsor. Their CEO, Morgan Edge, is awfully misogynistic. He forced female athletes to pose in bathing suits and lingerie as part of his sponsorship deal," she ranted, exasperatedly.
She took a pillow to hold on to in front of her abdomen for she felt more comfortable that way.

"What about the anonymous sponsor?" Alex asked.
Kara had been talking about the debate surrounding the new sponsor for a while, so she was aware of the situation.

"They don't trust it. Says that it's highly unusual… When I mentioned that we had an anonymous sponsor at my last club as well, they got even more suspicious. Apparently, sponsors are never anonymous, they always want something in return. Now they suspect the anonymous sponsor is following me. Our IT guy, Winn, is trying to hack the system to find out who the secret giver is, but according to him the security surrounding all contacts is so high tech, even he can't figure it out," Kara explained.

Not knowing what to say, Alex made Kara a plate.

"So… You've got some kind of rich, professional stalker?" Alex asked as she handed her sister the food.

"No, I don't worry about that. If that anonymous sponsor is indeed following my career, they aren't ill-intended. If they were, it would have been much easier to demand things from me at my previous club since we weren't in the spotlight at all."
Kara stuffed her mouth as if it was her first meal in weeks.

"Edge Global!" Alex summed up as the problem for Kara's mood.

"Edge! I wouldn't be surprised if I'm photographed in my underwear within the next three months for the world to see."

"At least you've got a good body to show off." Alex tried to lighten the mood.

"Yeah, okay… But I'd like to be the one who decides who I show it to!"

It took Kara a full bucket of ice cream and an episode of their favorite comedy show to drop the topic.
Finally, there was room for Alex to talk about her day.

—----------------------------------------------------

On Thursday, Alex learned that Ruby had a playdate and she would go home with the other child, which meant she didn't have the opportunity to ask Sam for her phone number to see if they could become friends.

Friday was Alex's last day at the school. The week had been nothing like she expected; she discovered that she liked working with children, she learned how to inform them about sometimes complicated matters, and against all odds, she made a friend.

In her last thirty minutes, the headmaster invited Alex for an evaluation of her week. During the formal compliments, the phone rang. Before he picked up, the headmaster gestured that Alex should remain seated while he took the call.

Alex was picking up one half of a conversation that wasn't meant for her. Nervously she tapped her fingers on the desk while searching the room for something interesting to focus on.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Arias, but we are not a daycare…"
Alex's attention got pulled in by the phone call. He was talking to Sam.
"Her teacher can look after Ruby for thirty minutes tops, after that she has other obligations… I can't help you with that. Can't you call her father? Or isn't there a grandmother who can help out?"

Knowing there was nobody, Alex spoke up on a whim, "I can take her!"

"Excuse me," he said to Sam before he turned to Alex, "I'm sorry, what?"

"I can take care of Ruby until Sam can pick her up. Ruby likes me and Sam and I get along very well."

He gave a small nod, "Doctor Danvers offers to take care of her, does that work for you?... Good. Have a nice day."

—---------------------------------------------------

It was already nearing 7 pm when Sam could finally get away from her boss to rush back to the school.
She cursed herself for not having any of Alex's contacts. Her connection with Alex was nice, but she realized that she didn't know enough about her to leave her child in her care. Even if she was good to Ruby, if the school was closed, where was she gonna find them?

Sam parked her car in front of the school. She accelerated her pace as she neared the main entrance, hoping that Alex stayed there with her little girl. The darkness inside wasn't hopeful.
Sam pulled the door, but it did not move. The doors were locked and the school seemed empty.

"No-no-no-" she said to herself as the blooming tightness compressed her chest.
In a state nearing panic, she circled the school desperately, hoping to find an open door.
At the back, in one of the classrooms, she saw someone cleaning. Grabbing his attention by knocking on the window, all she could out was: "Ruby?"

—------------------------------------------------

Holding a ball under her arm on one side, and the hand of a little girl on the other, Alex went back to Sam's place, hoping she'd finally be home.
She had gotten Sam's address from Ruby's teacher, so she could take the girl home. Despite her efforts to stall time, Sam had remained absent. She seriously considered taking Ruby to her home if Sam still hadn't returned.

Fortunately, Sam's car was parked in the driveway.

"Mommy!" Ruby yelled.
Because they didn't have to cross a road anymore, Alex let Ruby run towards the house.

Sam sat at the counter, impatiently waiting for her friend to pick up the phone. Lena was a genius in many ways, one of them being computer technology, which meant she could easily find Alex's number and address.
Before she picked up, the front door opened. Sam froze for a second, hoping she heard it correctly.
When Ruby walked around the corner, Sam abandoned her phone immediately to greet her daughter with a tight hug.

"Welcome home," Alex said, happy to see a good ending to the day.

Without letting Ruby go, Sam looked up, "Oh gosh, Alex. You're a lifesaver! Thank you so much."

Alex chuckled at the desperation in which Sam held her daughter, it was heartwarming to witness.
Standing there as she watched them felt intrusive.
"I-I think I'm just gonna go," Alex stammered.

"What? No! Please, stay. At least for dinner." Sam stood up.

"We went to Chuck E Cheese!" Ruby said enthusiastically.

"Well, that's lucky!" Sam smiled.
"And we played soccer on the field. And Alex got me a ball. And we ate ice cream."

"Sounds like you've been busy. Can I offer you a drink?"

"I'd like a coke!" Ruby answered.

"I was talking to Alex, it sounds like you've had enough sugar already," Sam chided.

To Sam's relief, Alex stayed till after Ruby's bedtime.

"I'm sorry Alex, this rarely happens. Yesterday, the big boss showed up at the office, and when he does, he usually keeps me there longer - ignoring all arrangements we agreed upon considering Ruby. I bet he only does that to piss off his sister. He likes to argue with her, it's really toxic. I don't like him." Sam explained herself.

"For obvious reasons!" Alex sipped her beer.

"Didn't you have to cook for your sister today?"

"Not today. She has a game tomorrow, so she's with her team."
Alex observed the exhausted mother, whose circles under her eyes seemed to darken by the minute, indicating that it was almost time for Alex to go home.
"Sam… You've got a lot on your plate. I live close by and I don't mind helping out. If you ever get in a situation like today again, just give me a call. Unless I'm in surgery, I will pick up and we’ll figure something out. The hospital has pretty good childcare if needed."

Sam's eyes watered, with unexpected gratitude for the young doctor: knowing how busy her schedule must be, "Thanks, Alex. I appreciate that."

Alex lifted her glass.
"That's what friends are for!"

Chapter Text

Armed with a bottle of wine and a bag of snacks, Sam took the elevator up to the penthouse of the L-Corp building. Her best friend made a home for herself at the same place she worked, rarely leaving the building as a result.

At the end of the workday, Sam had sent Lena home because she tended to overwork herself when she was in a state like this.

“Yay, more wine to celebrate."
In contrast to her cheerful words, Lena's expression greeted her emotionless at the door.

Barefooted, Lena strolled to the counter of her kitchen. Her high heels lay for trash in the hallway, unlike all her other shoes who were properly stored in a big cabin.
She hadn’t changed after getting home, still wearing her pencil skirt and aubergine blouse. The only thing she did change was her hair, having freed it from its tight ponytail.

Searching all her drawers and cabins, she couldn't find the bottle opener that lay next to the bottle screaming "Pick me!" with its obvious placing between the two empty bottles Lena mastered earlier.
Frustrated, Lena slammed a drawer close much harder than necessary.

For Sam, this was her sign to step in.
She walked around the counter to hold Lena by her shoulders — not many people knew how soft the strong and composed CEO became under the gentle touch of someone she trusted.

"Lena, honey. Why don't you change into something more comfortable while I pour us some wine, okay?"

"I don't need a mother," Lena bravely protested.

"I know. You need a friend, and that's exactly why I'm here."

With a sigh, Lena surrendered, giving Sam a quick hug and a word of thanks, before she stumbled out of the room to do what she was told.

Lena might be the most remarkable and strongest person Sam knew, but deep down she was also the loneliest soul Sam ever encountered.
Growing up as the brilliant black sheep of the frigid family she was adopted into, Lena adjusted. She learned to shield herself, to be on her own, and not depend on anyone. But yet despite that hard shell of self-protection, Lena had an immense amount of love to give.
Seeing the loneliness shimmer in her eyes was always a painful reminder of the hurt Sam could never take away from her. She could relieve her for moments, but it was never truly gone.

During Lena's last relationship she lost the loneliness for a couple of weeks, after that it only grew stronger. Sam had to watch powerless how her friend lost a part of herself in her desperation to find that feeling of the first few weeks back again.

That's why Sam smiled when Lena broke up with James.
It would sting, but at least Lena could go back to being herself again.

Dressed in her oversized MIT sweater, leggings, leg warmers, and warm fuzzy socks, Lena returned.

"Yeah! That's what I'm talking about! You look so huggable, my girl," Sam cheered with two glasses of red wine raised in the air.

"Don't touch me!" Lena warned her, though the blush on her cheeks and oppressed smile betrayed her need for a cuddle that would surely happen later that evening.

She slumped down on the couch next to Sam, who waited patiently for Lena to talk.
Even if she wouldn't speak for a while, Sam would be fine with that, she could just be there for Lena.

Staring at the abyss, Lena's lip trembled, and with her voice thick with emotion she spoke, "What if he's right?"
A tear rolled over her cheek so devastating it could cut a heart in half.

"What do you mean, darling?"
Sam managed to sound calm, even though rage already pumped through her veins knowing that James must have said something stupid to hurt her again.

"What if…" She sniffed. "I am just like my family, incapable of love?"

Sam had to bite her tongue to suppress her initial reaction.
James had always compared Lena to her brother, who was now serving jail time for fraud and illegal weapon production and deals. Lena's mother carried a stone-cold reputation, people suspected her of being capable of drowning puppies with her bare hands and then smiling as the life was drained from innocent eyes.

"You're nothing like the Luthors, Lena. You're warm and kind-hearted and-"

"You keep saying that!" Lena interrupted her with a cry. "But- but it’s not true! Look at me Sam, I'm alone again. The unlovable Luthor, just like James said."

Hearing Lena tearing herself down like that, broke Sam's heart.
She scooted closer to grab Lena's hand.
"That's not true, Lena. I love you."

Lena scoffed, "That doesn't count, that's different."

"I disagree! It makes all the difference. Your brother and your mother don't have friends. They don't know what it means to have a friendship like you and I share. You're Ruby's favorite aunt, and Alex is fond of you. Lex and Lillian don't have that… They have minions!"
A small smile broke through, encouraging Sam to take the next step in her pep talk.
"And James is a fool! He was wrong for saying that. To be honest, I do feel like your break-up deserves a celebration because he never appreciated the marvel that you are. He took you for granted. And you deserve so much more!"

Finally, a smile broke through Lena's tears.
"He didn't treat me right, did he?"
"No!" Sam was quick to agree.
"I would have done everything for him, but he’d never have seen me as anything but… a Luthor."

The venom Lena used to speak her own name, nauseated Sam.
Lena always fought her family’s reputation, and raised far above their legacy as a better person; She took over LuthorCorp in National City, rebranded it to L-Corp, and was determined to make it a force for good.
James fueled her self-loathing to the point that she poisoned her own name.
Sam hated him for that.

"He never deserved you, Lena. He never did." Sam could hold a Ted talk about all the reasons why she hated James so much, but that wouldn't help Lena now.
She took a deep breath to calm herself down, hoping some of the serenity she tried to reflect would rub off on Lena.

"I don't think I ever loved him." Lena broke the silence. Even though her eyes were still red and puffy, her tears had dried.
The ten minutes of silence helped Lena order her mind and gather her emotions.
"I think I liked the idea of possibly being loved by him… And I was ready to do anything to achieve that, but I was never enough for him. I'm such a fool!"

Sam shook her head, "It's not foolish to search for love. I just got lucky."

Lena dropped her head back, "I want what you guys have," she whined.

A blush crept on Sam's face as she imagined her girlfriend being an amazing mother to Ruby at their home right now.

Lena scoffed as she took another sip of her wine, "Honestly, I feel like the closest I ever got to love and being loved was with my first. I know it sounds crazy because we only knew each other for a day, but…"

It wasn't the first time Lena mentioned her first, whenever she needed hope or happiness, she drew from that memory. Usually, Sam let her idolize that moment.
"Did you know that women intend to confuse good sex with love?" She corrected Lena subtly. "That's why women more often want to be certain of their feelings before they sleep with their potential lover. It has something to do with brain chemicals, I can't remember the entire article."
Sam shook her head, disappointed in herself that she could not feed Lena with more facts.

"I know the study. What are you trying to say?" Lena asked.

Deflecting on what Sam meant — that Lena had turned her first in some kind of myth nobody could live up to — she said: "James must have been good in the bedroom to keep you hooked for over a year."

Lena sat up, "Are you kidding me? Jimmy was selfish in the bedroom, he did not see me at all. He chased his own pleasures with no regard to what I did or didn't want."

Shocked by Lena's sudden confession, Sam asked, "Did he-?" but was cut off by the finger Lena held up.

"No! All I'm saying is that I know what it's like to be respected in the bedroom and he did not do that! I will not let you put words in my mouth."

Sam pressed her mouth shut as she backed away from Lena, giving her the space she needed.
This was a subject to keep in the back of her mind for when Lena needed to talk about it, though Sam knew she probably never would.

Lena threw her glass back and filled it up again, continuing to drink too fast for her own good.
When she put her empty glass on the table she took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have yelled at you."

"Well, that was quick!" Sam chuckled, knowing that Lena's apologies mostly needed more time to simmer.

The liquor worked wonders in easing the sorrow of the youngest Luthor.
Her cheeks flushed pink and she muffled her laugh.

"I don't want to be angry anymore. I don't wanna be sad either! I don't even want to talk about him anymore, he's not worth it."

"I'm proud of you for leaving him, you know that?"
Knowing that the amount of alcohol Lena had consumed would surely give her a headache in the morning, Sam poured her a glass of water on the side.
Lena needed her hope and happiness, that's why she said: "Tell me about her instead!"

"I'm not giving you her name!"
Only thinking about her sparked joy in Lena's eyes.

"Oh, come on!"
"Nope! You knew. You've seen her. And you forgot!"
"That's so not fair. I was under a lot of stress at the time, plus I had a pregnancy brain. I barely remember anything from that period!"
"And I'm having too much fun keeping her all to myself."
"Unfair!"

Her content grin betrayed how much Sam cheered her up.
Finally, Lena dropped her shoulders, letting go of all the tension she held trapped in her muscles.

"I feel like such a fool for not keeping in touch with her. Sometimes I wonder if we could have made it as a couple."
Lena slumped sidewards against the back of her couch, supporting her head on her hand.

"It wouldn't have been the right timing anyway. You were about to start your study at MIT. Even I barely spoke with you during that time… But you can still look her up now, who knows what could come out of it," Sam said.

A part of Sam hoped Lena wouldn't do that. Disappointment would shatter the fantasy that gave her so much strength, the risk was too great. On the other hand, she could be as magical as Lena remembered her.

Lena clicked her tongue, "It's no use. She has a pretty amazing career right now, and she has a boyfriend. I bet she doesn't even remember me."

Sam sighed, "Please, Lena. You make an unforgettable impression on everyone you meet."

"Hmm…" Lena smiled as her eyes trailed off again.
"Sam? Could you do me a favor?"

"Anything," Sam answered without a second thought.

"Tell me again how you and Alex got together? I need a good love story."

Sam grinned proudly.
"Light up the fireplace, I'll make us some popcorn!"
She jumped up to get her bag.

"And exaggerate a bit, I need some unrealistic, romantic drama," Lena said as she dimmed the lights.

"We could just watch a Hallmark movie!" Sam yelled from the kitchen.

"No, Sam! I've got a broken heart. Humor me!" Lena had a hard time keeping her laughter.

Sam came back with a bowl of popcorn.
"A long, long time ago, at a kingdom far, far away…"

Lena rolled her eyes, "It was seven years ago at the kindergarten around the corner."
"I was a primary school and you wanted exaggerated, and romantically dramatic!"
"Not that much!" Lena teased accusingly.

Lena always enjoyed how Sam could swoon when she talked about her girlfriend.
Life hasn't always been easy on Sam, but since she met Alex, the sun shined brighter.
Seeing her friend so happy warmed Lena's heart. She had always wished Sam the best, and with Alex, it seemed like she had found her happy ending.

When Alex moved in with Sam, it seemed like the most obvious thing to do. Alex's sister — who was always referred to as 'the sister' — moved out of town, and Sam could use some help raising Ruby. They started as roommates with separate bedrooms, but Alex grew on Sam.

"I've never had this big crush on her, I didn't even know I could ever love a woman… But when Alex went away for two weeks to visit her sister, I felt incomplete. I realized I couldn't imagine my life without her, and the thought of her moving out one day devastated me."
This was Lena's favorite part.
"Out of friendship I grew into loving her, and never wanting to be without her ever again. When she came home, I was so nervous but also excited, and it all confused me so much. I fell into her arms and held her tight, sobbing excessively that I had missed her and never wanted another day without her."
Lena assumed this was exaggerated.
"Alex pulled back. She held my face in her hands, 'do you mean that?' she asked me. A sudden fear of rejection overwhelmed me, at this point I could only nod."
Lena scrunched her nose in excitement, knowing what was coming up next.
"Then she kissed me." Sam sighed softly. "Apparently, she felt the same way and had a deep conversation about me with her sister in those weeks. She convinced Alex to be honest with her feelings."

Lena pulled her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them.
"She sounds nice."

"She's actually moving back to National City. Until her new apartment is ready, she's staying with us. Why don't you come and spend the night at our place?" Sam suggested.

Lena let the idea run through her intoxicated mind.

"We can have a girls' night, and Alex's sister makes an excellent breakfast in the morning… Come on, Lena. You won't be so alone!" Sam nudged her.

A shy smile curled Lena's lips, "Thanks, but I'm not really in the mood for meeting new people. Maybe another time."

The night evolved into easy chit-chat with an occasional outburst surrounding James. Thankfully, they could also laugh at some of the dumb things he had said or done.
The safest subject, containing the least emotion, was work. For the two workaholics that Lena and Sam were, it was impossible to have one night without mentioning work.

"I don't want a gala for this year's charity event, everybody does a gala and I'm sick of them. Help me think of some other way to raise money."
Lena emptied the final drops of wine in her throat.

"I will, but I think it's time for you to go to bed."
Sam concluded by the way Lena slurred her words and her eyelids dropped.

"Oh, already? You just got here!"
"It's almost 2 AM, do you want me to stay?"
"Nah, you have fun with your girlfriend and her sister…" Lena laughed out loud. "Not in that way! Unless you're into that, I won't judge."

"No, Lena. That would be weird." Sam gently guided Lena toward her bedroom.
"Although Alex is good-looking, if her sister is just as pretty, I wouldn't blame you."

Sam pulled the covers back so Lena could lie down. "Alex's sister is adopted, so they don't look alike."
"Hmm… adopted…" Lena had a goofy smile on her face while Sam pulled off her socks and leg warmers. "What was her name again?"

Sam tugged Lena in, who was already dozing off.
"Her sister's name is Kara."

Lena turned to her side with her eyes already closed.
"Hmm, Kara Danvers… Lovely, Kara Danvers…" she mumbled close to sleep.

"Sure you do, sweetheart. I'll put a bucket next to your bed, in case you get sick tonight."
Sam stroked her hand over Lena's head.

"Kara… Danvers…" The name came out close to a moan.

"Yeah okay… not weird at all," Sam mused to herself.

—-----------------------------------------------------

As a typical, lazy morning teenager, Ruby postponed her day for as long as possible, while Kara used her sunshine to prepare breakfast for everyone but Alex — who had an early shift.

Kara enjoyed the smell of fresh bread, bacon, and eggs in the morning, it was her favorite.

"Smells good," Sam called. The bags beneath her eyes betrayed her lack of sleep.

"Goodmorning, Sam. Feel free to sleep in today, I can take Ruby to her game," Kara said as she got the croissants out of the oven.
"I was gonna save you breakfast."

Sam stretched her limbs.
"Yeah, Alex told me before she got up. But I missed Ruby's last game as well, I wanna cheer her up this time."

"Well, she's still asleep, so-"
"Oh, no. She already growled at me when I turned on the lights."

Kara remembered how Alex used to be the same in the morning. After a while, Kara adjusted to just making breakfast and leaving some for her sister with no expectations of eating together.
Most of the time Alex did show up and they could share a few words before Kara had to go.

Sam sat at the dinner table, where Kara placed the plate with bacon as the last ingredient on her breakfast table.

"I could get used to this!" Sam smiled.

"Enjoy it while you can. Probably a few more weeks until I can move into my apartment."
Kara sat across the table from Sam. She was grateful for the company, even though it was clear that Sam had a short night.

"How was your friend?" Kara asked.

"Drunk!" Sam said before drinking some coffee. "But she's strong. I'm glad she dumped him."

"You didn't like the guy?" Kara asked with her mouth half stuffed with scrambled eggs and avocado.

Sam shook her head, "Not for her. She deserves someone who can look past her family name… She's nothing like them. The Luthors are ruthless, but as soon as you break through her she'll, Lena is one of the kindest persons you'll ever meet. And he took her for granted, mistreated her even. I think he was only with her because it gave him status."

"I understand she's a big name in the business world?"

"She's a powerful woman, indeed."

"Why was she even with him, if she could do so much better?" Kara wondered.

"She should do so much better! But she doesn't believe she deserves it, she never learned to love herself. Unfortunately, her last name scares a lot of good people off as well."

"People who let themselves be influenced by her last name instead of the person, aren't good people, to begin with!" Kara noted.

Sam nodded, "I think she just needed to feel loved. Unfortunately, she hoped he was it for her. But he could never live up to her memory of a past lover, I guess that saved her from him."

Kara knew it wasn't funny, still, she couldn't hide her chuckle, "I understand the feeling."
Sam raised her eyebrows, silently asking for more information.
Kara dropped back in her seat and bit her lower lip. She rarely spoke of what happened to her about thirteen years ago — even Alex knew little — yet Kara could relive that night vividly in her mind. Funny enough, the girl was also named Lena.
"I also had an experience, I tend to compare everyone to."

Sam leaned forward, "Tell me more!"

Kara could feel the heat rising to her face, "I'll keep that to myself if you don't mind."

Sam groaned, "You're no fun! You're the same kind of boring. You two should date!"

"Maybe we should," Kara teased, knowing there was only one Lena she would date in a heartbeat.

"I didn't know you were into girls!"

"Only on special occasions."

That answer was so vague that Sam decided to drop the subject for now.

Ruby came down early for her doing, so she could join her mother and aunt for breakfast. When Sam insisted on going with her to the game, Ruby made her disappointment clear.
"No," she theatrically exaggerated, "aunt Kara, please tell me you're still coming. I already told my team that you were coming."

Remembering a teenager's social pressure, Kara and Sam agreed to both come to watch the game.

"But you can't wear glasses, aunt Kara. You never wear glasses during games or press moments."

"I do on my day off. I'm not wearing my contacts today, I actually prefer my glasses," Kara said as she adjusted them on her nose.

"But nobody will recognize you. You look like a clumsy office nerd with them-"

"Ruby!" Sam corrected her, unpleased with the demand she put on Kara.

"Without, you look like a superhero!" Ruby's admiration shimmered through her desperation.

Kara was flattered by the comparison but also amused about the passion Ruby put into her plea.

"I will take them off when I meet your team and if they want pictures, but other than that: I will wear my glasses!" Kara comprised.

—-------------------------------------------------

At the side of the field, Kara was soon spotted by Ruby's opponents.
Kara had already taken her team to meet Ruby's team and trainer, but she forgot how many young girls idolized her since she transferred to Nation City's biggest club: NC Atalanta.

While the children were doing their warm-up and the referee occupied Kara a little longer with some small talk, Sam finally received a sign of life from Lena in the form of a phone call.

Sam answered the phone with, "Good morning, sleeping beauty. How is your head?"

"Heavy! I'm still in bed." Lena's voice was hoarse.

Lena appeared to have some holes in her memory from the night before.

"Please, tell me I didn't say or do anything embarrassing," Lena said.

Sam looked over at Kara, who had an animated conversation with the smiling referee.

"Not at all," she lied, "how did you sleep? No bad dreams I hope!"

Lena's scoff, followed by a silence, gave Sam a pretty good idea.
"I slept pretty well. And no bad dreams… on the contrary."

"Do tell," Sam challenged her.

"It's the kind of dream a lady doesn't share!"

"Since when do you qualify as a lady?"

"I'm gonna take a shower. Bye, Sam!" Lena quickly ended the call.

Sam clicked her tongue as she stared thoughtfully at her phone, wondering if…

"Is your friend finally awake?"
Kara sat next to Sam at the row of chairs placed at a safe distance from the field to keep the parents from interfering.

The soft moan Lena produced last night at the mentioning of Kara's name, sparked her curiosity. Lena had smiled when she heard her name.
"Have you ever met Lena Luthor?" She asked.

Without losing her gaze from the field, Kara answered: "Your friend? I don't think we've ever met. What about her?"

"But you once knew a Lena, didn't you?" Sam tried to push it, hoping to force what she wanted to hear out of Kara.

Even after all these years, Kara could never forget her Lena. She became a ghost in her memory; haunting every love affair she attempted to start. Lena was always there, incomparable, so close to her heart yet so far out of reach. Kara hated her as much as she treasured her. In her mind Lena represented everything, and nobody could live up to her.
Kara had cursed herself for not asking her number or even her e-mail address — even though hers was soccergirl38@ at the time because soccergirl was already taken and 38 was her favorite number. She had looked for her, but without her surname, she didn't get far. Her Lena being the tough business icon Lena Luthor was simply not possible, although Sam said that her friend had a kind heart, a CEO of that magnitude needed a ruthlessness to her character.
Her Lena had been an angel; she had been so thoughtful, gentle, and fun on top of that, she had put Kara's needs above her own like Kara put Lena's above hers. It was the perfect balance to experiment and explore each other and themselves. Kara expected the same level of intimacy and safety from the lovers after her, but after a decade she began to wonder if she hadn't made a myth out of her green-eyed goalie. Surely she couldn't have been that perfect.
After all these years, Kara had made peace with the idea that Lena probably didn't even remember her. They were teenagers at the time. Lena had enough suitors, given that she had to chase one off that only evening she spent with her.
It was good as it was, with Lena being her perfect memory.

Sam paid close attention to the blonde, who refused to answer but flushed red while cracking her knuckles thoughtlessly.
The sound of the whistle for the start of the game saved Kara from answering, but Sam knew enough to act on her hunch.

—----------------------------------------------------

Close to midnight, Alex finally came home.
Sam had made herself comfortable on the couch waiting for her, knowing that Alex either had a very good or a very bad day after working over as long as she did.

Upon seeing a shadow move in the dim light, Alex froze. Being sharp all day had blurred her vision and clouded her mind. She needed to hear Sam's voice before she could lose her tension.

"Hey babe," Sam said as she stood up to meet her girlfriend.
Her slumped shoulders and the dark skin beneath her wide-opened eyes gave away the hard day she's had.
She made haste to capture Alex in her arms.

The embrace gave Alex the instant release of what she had bottled up for the last few hours.
"I lost a patient today."

It was a part of her job, they both knew that, but some days it affected Alex more than others, and when it did she always had Sam to curl up against to get it out of her system.

On the couch, with a cold beer waiting for her on the table, she spoke a few cryptic words like she always did.

"A girl Ruby's age. Surgery went fine. But unexpected complications and… We could not save her."
Alex couldn't say more. Luckily, she didn't have to, Sam understood that just holding her and allowing her to be, made all the difference in the world.
Sam's calm breathing and the fingers playing with her hair chased the awful day away, leaving the hospital behind.

"How was Ruby's game?" Alex asked after a good fifteen minutes of silence.

Sam told about the tough match they had, resulting in a tie.
"But I think both teams were showing off for your sister. An awful lot of pointless tackles and useless tricks occurred right in front of our noses."

"What a coincidence." Alex's mood shifted.

"I thought so too. Ruby wasn't amused. She thought she would be the cool kid for bringing Kara, instead, every kid tried to show Kara how cool they were."

A smile broke through as the oldest Danvers reached for her beer.
"How did Kara respond?"

"Like a combination of a pro and a soccer mom, clearly favoring Ruby to all other kids-"
"As she should!"
"-but still handing out autographs and kicking balls with all the kids. She also took her time to talk to the trainers and referees… That woman has no clue when people are flirting with her."
"No clue!" Alex agreed.
"None!"
"She's so oblivious."

"We never introduced Kara and Lena to each other, did we?" Sam took a shortcut to what she wanted to discuss with her lover.

As Alex paused to think she put the bottle of beer to her lips.
She searched her mind for all the times' Kara was in National City and could have met Lena, but her mind was blurred with the straining surgery of today.

"I don't think so," she decided, "the times' Kara was here, Lena had to work or was on a business trip. I do honestly believe that Lena held her lonely little pity party last Thanksgiving, even though we invited her."

"She definitely did." Sam nodded, knowing very well that Lena had to deal with her mother's cruelty soon before and was not in the mood for festivities.
"But what if they did?"
Sam hopped in her seat, pulling both her feet beneath her.

"Did what?"
"What if Kara and Lena already met?"
"I'm sure they would have told us." Alex's head was getting heavy.
"No, no… before we met."

Alex could not keep up with Sam's enthusiasm, the cries of the girl's parents still echoed through her mind.
She was no stranger to losing patients, but most of the time she was able to leave it behind as soon as she walked out of the hospital. Once in a while, she stumbled upon a case that hit closer to home. Today, the girl was too much like Ruby, she even proudly told the parents that she had a teenager at home as well, so she understood some behaviors.

"What if Lena is the girl Kara was with once?"

Alex scoffed, "Don't be ridiculous."

Disappointed by Alex's rejection of her idea she slightly altered, "Even if they weren't, they could still hit it off-"

"Kara is not gay! She experimented once, but that doesn't mean she's into girls. She's only dated some guys, but with soccer being her first love, none of them stayed around."
Alex lashed out.
She knew she was being unreasonable the moment she saw her harsh words hit Sam like a slap in the face.
Unable to deal with the consequences, she walked away to do what she should have done when she got home: kiss Ruby goodnight.

As Alex watched Ruby from the door opening, the girl turned.

"You're home late," Ruby said sleepily.

"Yeah, I had a difficult surgery." Grateful that the tears building in her eyes weren't audible, she approached the bed.
"How was your game?"

"It was alright." Ruby made room for Alex to sit. "Becky got a yellow card and Jessica got into a fight with a member of the other team."
"What's new," Alex said sarcastically.
"She's such a hot-head! But I did well. I took a corner the way aunt Kara showed me, I didn't score but the ball did curl in the air!"

She made Alex laugh through her tears, causing a sniff to escape.

"Are you crying?" Ruby asked.

"Hmm." Alex shook her head, realizing Ruby probably wouldn't see that in the dark. "I just had a long day and I'm happy to see you."

"I'm happy you're home." Ruby spread her arms out for a hug, one Alex never denied her.

After wishing the girl good night, she closed the door to her room behind her.
In the hallway, she found Kara waiting for her with her arms crossed in front of her chest.

"Hey… What was that all about?" Kara said softly.

"I was just saying good night to Ruby." Alex wiped her arm over her face, hoping to hide the flowing tears.

"I heard you screaming at Sam that I wasn't gay. What was that about?"

Alex slumped against the wall next to Kara with a deep sigh.
"I-I don't know exactly. I'm tired and I was only listening half, to be honest. And Sam was more excited about something than I could handle, so I…"

"You lashed out at her!" Kara wrapped her arm around her sister to pull her closer. Alex used the opportunity to rest her head on Kara's shoulder.
"Well, you better make that up to her, because Sam and I had a fun day together. I really like her, so don't you dare mess this up with your bad attitude!"

"She was just too happy," Alex whined.

Kara patted her back.
"Yeah… She decided to organize a soccer tournament instead of a gala for the annual fundraiser for her company and asked for my help… She was so excited that I can't help feeling that she's up to something."

As parts of the conversation between Sam and her came back, Alex connected the dots. She snickered as she looked at her sister.
"Oh, she's definitely up to something."

"What?" Kara asked with a smile.

Alex shook her head, "Nothing harmful. Just for her own entertainment… Sometimes it shows that she missed a part of her teenage years."

Kara wrapped her arms around her sister.
"And you love that about her."

"I certainly do!" Alex tightened her grip on Kara. "Thanks for cheering me up."

Before Alex could get back to Sam, Kara stopped her.
"About my sexuality… I- I don't rule anything out, you know... You of all people should know it only takes one person to change a person's perspective on their own sexuality."

Kara was right.
They had all assumed Sam was straight – including Sam – until Alex found a way into her heart.

Sam had already cleaned the living room when Alex returned.
Without saying a word, Alex pulled Sam into an embrace that lasted till Sam was lovingly drawing patterns on Alex's back.

"I didn't mean to lash out, I shouldn't have," Alex apologized.

Sam shook her head.
"I should have paid more attention to your body language… You needed a listening ear instead of me hyping about something totally unrelated."

Alex cupped Sam's face.
"I like hyped you! I just couldn't handle it right now."

"I'm calm now. I can listen if you want to talk," Sam offered as she played with Alex's hair.

"Hmm." Alex closed her eyes and kissed her lips tenderly.
"I'd rather go to bed and fall asleep in your arms."

Sam took her hand as she walked backward out of the room, leading her upstairs.
"I can take care of that." She smirked.

—-----------------------------------------------

Sam bolted with excitement, not only for her enthusiasm over the replacement for the gala she came up with but also for the prospect she had of introducing Lena to Kara.

Alex had laughed as she called her a giddy teenager for her plans. Sam couldn't disagree, she had missed a part of her teenage years she wished to catch up on. Luckily for her, Alex adored that part of her, she understood and supported her, though she stayed Sam's voice of reason when she tended to get overboard.
For this project — as Sam liked to call it — Alex volunteered to be involved.

"What are you so happy about?"
Lena said, still fixated on her laptop when Sam entered her office.

"You haven't even looked at me, why would you think I'm happy?"
Lena's sixth sense of perception often baffled Sam. Growing up with the Luthors and functioning as one of the nation's most successful businesswomen, observing people, reading their moods, and predicting their actions become second nature to Lena. As a child she needed to learn those skills to survive, now she used them to rule… and keep her best friend sharp.

"You knocked at my door with a melody and your footsteps are lighter than normal, this was too easy. Don't let me look up from my work, Sam. Spit: What are you up to?"
Buried deep in analyzing statistics, Lena preferred to be distracted as little as possible. Any other person would have been shown the door, but Sam was her only exception.

Sam rolled her eyes at the accuracy of Lena's observation, displeased with how obvious her tells were she leaned on Lena's desk.

"I have an alternative for the gala!"
"The gala?" Lena made some notes on the statistics she compared.
"You asked me to come up with something else…"
"Yes?" Lena was losing focus on her work since Sam took so long to get to the point.
"So, I organized a soccer tournament!"

Sam pursed her lips together, waiting for Lena's reaction.
It came in the form of a sigh and the closing of her laptop.

"Okay, I'll bite. How are you planning to do that?"
Cranky over the lack of sleep due to all the emotions her break-up caused, she wasn't pleased with the interruption, yet a soccer tournament intrigued her.
Lena had never lost her interest in the game.

Sam sat down and elaborated on her plans.

"Don't get me wrong, Sam, I like the idea… But if L-Corp is going to compete with companies like Obsidian North, CatCo, and Edge Global – I can't have Betty from HR competing, whose only experience with the game is watching her child play and occasionally kicking a lonely ball back on the field… I want people who can play!"

"Like you?!" Sam smirked, knowing that Lena still had that twinkle in her eyes whenever she had the chance to watch a game, especially when the goalie made an impressive save.

Lena entertained the thought of standing between the bars for a second, but she shook her head, "Not me. I'm too out of shape and too short to reach the corners of the goal."

Sam averted her eyes, she had hoped for more enthusiasm on Lena’s part.
"Okay… Well, I arranged for a professional soccer player to help us form a team and train it. She will play with us according to the rules I came up with for the tournament: one professional athlete is allowed as long as they do it for free."

Lena scoffed as she leaned back in her seat, slightly turning her chair from left to right.
"And who will be so generous to be of service to us for free?"

Sam hoped that Lena would ask that question. This was the moment she had been waiting for ever since she got her epiphany.

"Alex's sister: Kara Danvers!"
Sam couldn't suppress her cocky grin.

Lena froze for a moment, her pupils constricted into tiny dots.
After that, she raised her eyebrow.

"You're messing with me, Sam! There's no way Kara and Alex are related. I ran their images through the feature gene check and the chances of them being sisters is less than 5%, even second cousins score higher!"

"You put my girlfriend and her sister through one of your software experiments?" Sam raised her voice, displeased with Lena's choice of action. "You could have just asked!"

Irritated by Sam's change of volume, Lena defended herself.
"That would have been weird!"
Lena couldn't imagine how to explain to Sam why she wanted to know.
Alex's sister and her first lover being the same person was too coincidental.
"Besides sharing the same surname, there's no reason to believe Kara Danvers is Alex's sister."
Lena convinced herself to justify her denial of the possibility ever since Sam started dating Alex Danvers.

"Lena, Kara is adopted!" Sam sighed, tired of Lena’s denial that — in combination with too much liquor — even erased a part of her memory.

With that, Sam silenced Lena as if she had slapped her across the face.
Blood seemed to withdraw from Lena's face as her mouth fell agape.
Sam realized that Lena's denial wasn't caused by hubris or ignorance, but by fear and insecurity. Her strong, nearly unbreakable friend, looked at her as though she had seen a ghost.
Recognizing Lena's rare vulnerability, Sam regretted the pre-joy she's had for this moment.

Lena frowned her brows and shook it off.
Refusing to believe that Alex's sister was her Kara, she opened the drawer under her desk that could only be opened with her fingerprint. She pulled out the old Galaxy magazine she carefully hid from the world to make sure a mistake of identity was made.
She threw the magazine on top of her desk and flipped a few pages, easily finding the article to show Sam. She had looked at the images so many times that the pages almost opened themselves up to her.

"This Kara Danvers?"
Lena was sure they couldn't be talking about the same person.

Shocked to see the half-naked sister of her girlfriend laying on top of her best friend's desk, she blurted out, "Where did you get that? That's a six-year-old magazine! Kara asked us to buy as many as we could because she didn't want anyone she personally knew to see them, but due to a delivery failure none of them ever arrived in National City."

"Ow, don't play dumb, Sam. Who do you think caused that delivery failure!" Lena gestured to herself, offended that Sam didn't consider her involvement in that matter.

Sam was drawn to the pictures she had never seen before.
From Kara's reaction to them, she assumed them to be a lot more pornographic with the shy blonde fully exposed. Yet these pictures were tasteful.
Kara wore a red hipster with the logo of SC National City. The lighting made her athletic body look like she was sculpted by the Gods. The more intimate parts of her breasts hid within the shadows, disappearing by the twist of her body or a football covering them.

"I've never seen these pictures before… They are pretty artistic. I can't believe Kara was so uncomfortable with them."
Sam picked up the magazine to take a closer look.

"She was?" Lena felt guilt creep up on her over the many times she had admired the pictures.
"But she's so beautiful."

Lena's soft sigh pulled Sam back to her original plan. She closed the magazine and placed it on the corner of the desk, "Her sister looks better."

The shift in Sam's tone confused Lena for a second until a chuckle broke through.
"You have to say that, she’s your girlfriend."

Sam cocked her head, "but truth be told: the pictures are stunning."

Lena stared at the magazine unable to say anything but agreeing with a: "hmm."

"Why did you stop the delivery in National City?" Sam asked more caring about her friend's feelings than she had been before.

With her gaze fixed on the magazine, Lena scrunched her nose.
"Because my brother buys those magazines just for the female athletes who are showcased as lust objects and I didn't want him to sprinkle his juice over her!"

Touched by Lena's reasoning, Sam got up to be closer to her friend.
"Why her, Lena?"
She put a hand on Lena's shoulder, where she felt the heat radiating from her friend.

Lena bit her lip and dropped her head.
This was so close.
Too close.
Kara had been that untouchable fantasy — maybe she was even a good excuse to never open herself up to love again — but with suddenly being within reach, Lena's walls collapsed in on herself.

"She was the first, wasn't she?" Sam confronted her friend gently.
Lena trembled beneath her touch.
Her small nod told Sam everything she needed to know.

A shiver ran over Lena's spine, chilling her to the bones.
Dreaming about Kara had been wonderful, but the possibility of actually seeing her again was a nightmare knocking on her door. Reality could never live up to the ideal she created in her mind. The memory of Kara was safe in there, only meeting her could destroy that perfection. She needed to prevent that at all costs.

Sam gave her a slight nudge, convincing her to let go and slump against her friend.

"If it cheers you up… As far as I can judge, she hasn't changed that much."
Sam gently caressed her friend.

"But I have…" Lena said, "I became this cold and boring businesswoman, while she just made her dream transfer to Atalanta and the national team within reach."

Sam chuckled at the irony. She squatted to meet Lena at eye level.
"In the core, you are still that warm, loving, kindhearted soul. The fact that you know that her recent transfer is a dream come true for her proves that."

Lena shrugged, "Well, I did follow her career."

"See!" Sam nudged Lena's shoulders. "And she will notice that too."

Lena shook her head, "Nope, no! I'm not going to meet her. Things are good the way they are."

"Well…" Sam pulled her hands back.

"Oh no… What did you do?"
Lena's eyes grew wide.

"She and Alex will be here to discuss the details with you."
Sam neglected to tell her that Alex was only tagging along to witness the reactions in case Sam's hypothesis was correct.
"You still have thirty minutes to get yourself back together."

Lena gasped, wondering how to properly breathe with Kara in the same room.
That morning, all those years ago, she left Kara's hotel room while she was still asleep, leaving nothing but a note of gratitude and apologies.

"Look at me, Lena. This is just a business meeting. It's the field where you thrive. You are gorgeous, strong, and very capable of handling this professionally." Sam encouraged her.

Lena let out a deep breath.
"Will you stay?"

Sam shook her head.
"Unfortunately, no. I have a meeting downtown with an investor. But Alex will be there, you know her. When in doubt: focus on Alex. You can do this!"

After a big hug, Lena let Sam out.
With only twenty-five minutes left, she needed to think about this.
Her tensed muscles screamed for the scotch she had stocked in her penthouse to release her stress.
When she left her office, she instructed Jess to let Ms. Danvers in as long as Alex was with her. They could wait in her office while she made herself more presentable.

—----------------------------------------------------

Waiting in the large, modern office made Kara nervous. She wanted to walk around, and explore the room, hoping to find something more human than the black, white, and gray color palette, and geometrical shapes of the furniture. Only the couch felt like the person sitting there would have a soul, but Alex didn't allow her to sit there.
Besides all that distant interior, the scent in the office smelled oddly familiar. It was like a warm blanket, wrapping around Kara, protecting her from the cold of the office.

On the balcony, Kara felt at ease. The view over the city was mesmerizing. The sun warming her skin was one of Kara's favorite feelings.
She pained her mind over where she had smelled this room before, what did that scent remind her of?
Kara paced in and out between the office and the balcony, that way she wouldn't get used to the smell and experience the intoxicating sensation that turned her organs to liquid over and over again.

"Just sit down!" Alex instructed her, "or at least stay in one place. You're making me nervous!"

Glancing from the balcony opening to the empty seat, Kara's eyes fell upon the magazine on the corner of the desk.
Her heart skipped a beat for she hadn't seen that cursed edition in years, she certainly did not expect to find it here.
Through a lawsuit, she made sure that no extra editions would be printed and none of it would be digitized.

"How on earth did she get that?!"
Kara snatched the magazine, waving it in front of her sister.
"She's one of the most powerful women in the nation and this is the impression she has of me!" Kara hissed between her teeth, violently tapping her finger against the cover that showed her and three teammates positioned as a wall from behind, only wearing shorts, high socks, and soccer shoes.

Alex pulled it from her grip.
"Calm down, Kara. Lena is a woman of class, I'm sure she doesn't see you as a sporty pin-up."
As Alex opened the magazine in search of Kara's contribution, she said, "You know, I never even saw them."

Leaning against the doorframe to the balcony, Kara cracked her knuckles.
"That's because I didn't want you to- to look at me differently."
She remembered how uncomfortable she was the day of the photoshoot.

"Have you ever seen them?" Alex looked up from the pictures.

Kara crossed her arms to tug her hands in. She shook her head, "I've got a whole map with all the pictures that never made it, but I've never looked at them."

"Kara, it's pretty close to art." Alex smiled. "You look good. Wanna see?"

In the battle between her anxiety and curiosity, Alex managed to change her mind.
With the step forward she was once again greeted by the calming smell she couldn't place. She closed her eyes for a second, hoping the association of the smell would come to her.
With an unexplainable flutter in her stomach, she stood next to Alex where she placed her hands on the arm and backrest of Alex's chair.
She could barely recognize herself. The pictures looked nothing like how used and sexualized she felt that day.
As she saw herself so strong, confident, and gorgeous, her mind took a turn to another memory.

"Oh golly!" She blurted out.
"I remember where I know this scent from…"

Chapter Text

One of the best things about taking Kara in had to be that she repaid Alex and Sam with the possibility of date nights between the two of them. Kara being there meant she was available to watch Ruby so that Alex and Sam could go out once in a while.

After a long day of meetings downtown, Sam was about to meet up with Alex – who had only texted her three letters about the meeting between Kara and Lena, and Sam needed to know all about it.

Alex was already waiting for her in the restaurant when she finally came in. She greeted her lover with a quick peck on the lips before she sat down across the table.

"So? How did it go?" Sam asked directly.

"Hey honey, I'm so glad to see you too. How was your day?" Alex smirked.

Sam rolled her eyes.
"Okay fine! Hey babe, my meetings were boring but successful, I got to fling my best friend into a gay panic trap- which I can't wait to hear how that turned out by the way, and now I’m patiently sitting through your teasing so you will tell me," Sam listed in one breath.
She placed her elbows on the table to rest her chin on her hands.

"We have a different definition of the word: Patiently. I need a drink first."
"Oh, come on! Alex!" Sam whined.
"You're just here for the gossip. Do I mean nothing to you anymore?" Alex asked, faux offended while looking at the menu.

Sam sighed. She had been working on her plan to reunite Kara and Lena ever since she got the thought that the two might have been involved in the past – which was just a few days ago.
Lena's reaction was not what she had hoped for, and while the confirmation that they indeed knew each other was satisfying, she still felt bad about the insecurity and panic she saw in her friend's eyes.
Sam had faith in a positive outcome, for Kara might be the sweetheart Lena needed in her life.
The two remembered each other, Sam was sure of that, unfortunately, she had no idea if Kara would even recognize Lena.

With a friendly gesture, Sam tried to capture the attention of the waiter to get her girl that drink she claimed to need.

"How did you know?" Alex asked when the appetizer arrived.
"How did you know that they knew each other?"

Sam smiled proudly because this meant Kara recognized Lena as well and she was about to hear all about it. That's why she warmed Alex up to the conversation by explaining her thought process starting with Lena's moan of Kara's name and ending with Kara's blush at the mentioning of Lena's first name.

"When I informed Lena about meeting Kara, she crumbled. Suddenly an insecure little girl was standing in front of me, stripped of all her armor and titles. Panicking over not being good enough and Kara probably not remembering her. I almost regretted setting them up. I haven't seen her this vulnerable in a long time."

Alex stopped chewing as she stared at Sam in disbelief.

"She just sent me a text that she screwed up. She thinks she made Kara feel uncomfortable."
The excitement in Sam's voice faded as she frowned her brows with worry.
"I feel kinda bad for putting her through that… Please, tell me their reunion wasn't a total disaster!"

"O, it was a disaster, alright. I have watched a social disaster unfold." Alex scoffed.

"Oh no… I feel so bad for Lena."
"Lena? You should have seen Kara!"

With the revelation of Kara being the one who was a mess, hope sparked within Sam. She sat up straight to take in the whole story.

"Lena was so in control that she made me feel uncomfortable."
Alex drank her wine to brace herself for revealing everything she had to witness.
"Now, I know that life is a catwalk for Lena but this seemed excessive for an office day, even for her."

Sam raised her brows.
"I didn't think her black pants and dark green shirt were that excessive. She was underperforming on her fashion scale."

"Her black and – no! She made us wait in her office, while she wasn't there yet."

"Confidence trick. Making you sit in an unknown room, adjusting to the comfort of her kingdom until she strolls in to rule and you are tempted to bow for your queen. Classic." Sam commented on Lena's choice of action.

"She strolled in; her hair perfectly styled, lipstick that complemented her purple dress – the one with the half long sleeves and the deep V-shaped cleavage with the split that shows just one of her legs… and the fuck-me-boots."

"The what?"

Heat rose to Alex's cheeks for her poor choice of words.
"The- the black boots that come all the way up to her thigh."

Sam chuckled in amusement, "She did a full outfit change. She really wanted to make an impression."

"Well, she did. Poor Kara tripped over thin air when Lena asked her to sit down. I've seen Lena deal with tough people before, but this arrogance of hers… new level!"

"Oh, no… she overcompensated for her insecurity." Sam dramatically facepalmed, drawing a laugh from Alex.

"It was such a mess, I should have brought popcorn. So I sat back and observed the show."
"That's why I sent you with her!"
"Kara had a hard time focusing on Lena's eyes, she's totally a boob-girl."
"Totally!" Sam confirmed.
"You knew?"
Sam gave a quick nod. "Go on!"

Alex had to shake it off before continuing.
"Okay… so… When Lena asked what Kara's plans were for the tournament, her brain stopped working. She said – and I quote – The ball… is round, we kick it in net… and win…"
"Wow… Brainfart!"
"She lost half her brain capacity in that office."
"How did Lena respond?"
Alex shifted in her chair. "Well, that's the thing. I thought she would grill Kara for her stupidity, but instead, she loosened up. She chuckled and I think she even blushed. But when she started talking again, I swear her voice wasn't even PG anymore!"

Sam could imagine. She had witnessed Lena abuse her seductive voice for business and when she was discussing certain subjects while being intoxicated.
She snickered, "That must have been uncomfortable for you."

"It felt like I was intruding!" Alex whined. "But it was worse for Kara. Her face had turned a bright color of pink and she was doing that thing with her knuckles that I hate so much. That cracking when she's nervous. It makes me feel nervous because I always feel like I have to stop her from cracking or she’ll break something. So I told her to stop it!"

"I'm sure you were nice about it," Sam said sarcastically.

"Well…" Alex looked up with a scrunched nose while cocking her head.
"But strangely enough, Lena completely melted! She wasn't bothered by it at all. Instead, she comforted Kara and gave her a fidget toy, saying that an office wasn't comfortable for everyone. She completely changed, her eyes even twinkled. Kara accepted that dumb toy and their hands just lingered too long on the 'accidental' touch." Alex made air quotes to empathize on the absurdity of their interaction.
"The eye contact was so intense, Sam. A brothel harbors less sexual tension than these two!"

Unfortunately, Sam had just taken a sip of her wine that she nearly choked on, thanks to Alex.

"That tension was so thick, I could cut it like a cake! It was too uncomfortable for me. If I hadn't interrupted that moment they'd probably still be eyefucking each other!" Alex groaned.

"You don't seem happy about that," Sam noted.

"I am, I think… I don't know… I've never seen Kara like that." Alex shook her head.
"Anyway, I had to tell Lena about the open training Kara is organizing as a try-out for the team this Friday because my sister forgot how words work… And suddenly she enthusiastically says: You should come! And you know what that friend of yours answered?"

To not make the same mistake again, Sam quickly swallowed her wine, bracing herself for the wit Lena would have spit.

"Maybe I'll come watching you train. Maybe… I'll come… who says that? That was so inappropriate! She said that to my little sister, right in front of me!" Alex was displeased by Lena's tease.

"You've got your head in the gutter." Sam calmed her down with a teasing grin.
"I'm sure she just likes to cum watching your sister."
With that, she fired Alex back up again. Sam enjoyed embarrassing her lover this way.

"Now that you mention it: What was with the magazine on her desk? Kara totally freaked out."

"The pictures are good, aren't they?" Sam changed the tone of the conversation.

Alex sighed.
"Nothing to be ashamed of," she admitted eventually.

"Well… Lena did make my sister smile in a way I haven't seen her smile in a long time… so, I couldn't be angry with her."

"See! They are destined to be together!" Sam excitedly exclaimed.

"I'm not saying that. Don't get involved!" Alex warned Sam by pointing her fork at her.
"But I had to hug her when we said goodbye… Also because I wanted to see what they would do!" Alex admitted.

As an act of revenge for Sam's earlier joke, Alex took her time eating her steak before continuing despite Sam's begging to share the conclusion with her.

"To be honest, it was kinda cute."
To torture Sam more, she took a bathroom break first.

Sam used her time to text Lena, hoping to get more information out of her. Unfortunately, she didn't respond which only made Sam grow more curious.

"Lena held Kara's hand when Kara offered the toy back," Alex whispered in Sam's ear before she walked around the table to sit back down.
"Kara hopefully said she'd see her this Friday: question mark. Lena said she would try, but couldn't promise anything."

"Wait! Were they still holding hands?"
Sam grabbed Alex's hands in excitement.

"It was adorable. I think at that point they didn't even notice they were still holding on. And I could have sworn Kara leaned in. For a moment I thought they would kiss, it was insane."
Usually, Alex wasn't the person to make a spectacle out of her sister, but the twinkle in Sam's eyes motivated her to up it a nudge.

"But they didn't? How much did she lean in?"

"About eight degrees I'd say… like this."
Glad that the table had been cleaned in her absence, Alex leaned in.
Sam's eyes darted to Alex's mouth. Bracing herself for a kiss, she closed her eyes.

"And then we left!" Alex abruptly pulled back.

"Wait! What?" Sam's disappointment was palpable.
"I don't care what Kara did, I still want that kiss!"

With a chuckle, Alex leaned over the table again, this time without pulling back. She kissed her girlfriend tenderly.

Sam ended the kiss.
"Okay, now tell me what Kara did."

"She dragged me out of the office and into the elevator where she had a mental breakdown. You were right. Kara did recognize Lena, and you know how she referred to her?"

Sam kindly thanked the waiter who brought them their desserts.

"Her green-eyed goalie. My… she said: MY green-eyed goalie."

"Aaaw," Sam responded, adored by the nickname Kara gave to her best friend.

"I can't believe Lena was Kara's first," Alex said as she switched her attention to her ice cream.

"And Kara was Lena's," Sam added.
"It's insane."
"It's destiny."
"It's a coincidence."
"It's a miracle!"
"You're a miracle."
"Oh stop it, Alex. Let's set them up!"
"Do not get involved!"
"Please?"

Alex sat back in her seat. She took her time to look at her girlfriend.

"I honestly don't think we need to, Sam. Just let them figure it out and I will tell you when Kara says something to me."

"Deal!"

—-----------------------------------------------------

In the safety of her office, Lena shamelessly went through some Google and YouTube searches. Her search history had always contained terms like: 'best of Kara Danvers,' 'Kara Danvers free-kick,' 'Kara Danvers penalty record,' 'Kara Danvers interview,' and 'Kara Danvers charity.' But ever since Kara had visited her office, Lena couldn't withhold herself from searching for terms such as: 'Kara Danvers relationship,' 'Kara Danvers boyfriend,' 'Kara Danvers girlfriend,' and 'Kara Danvers queer.'
She found out that apart from her being spotted at pride with some teammates — which labeled her as an ally — and a couple of fan accounts who mostly wished she was into the ladies and edited her romantically into pictures with other female athletes, there was nothing. Nothing but a rumor of her teenage years, and wishful thinking from her queer fans.

Lena snickered when she read the teenage rumor because only she knew how true it was. Unfortunately, it also made Lena doubt how real it was to Kara.
Before, Lena had interpreted Kara's nerves during their meeting as a possibility for her to take a shot at the athlete, but after finding nothing gay about her but some clothing choices in her free time, Lena felt like she was just an experiment to Kara. Her blushes and nerves could very well be connected to the confrontation with her youthful sins.
Even if Lena had been nothing more than a test dummy, she was still grateful it happened.

On her laptop screen, a compilation of Kara's best at her former club played. It was an ode from a fan to celebrate all her achievements at the club before moving on to NC Atalanta.

"Why aren't you ready? Training starts in forty minutes and I came to pick you up!"

Startled by the friend she didn't hear enter her office, Lena slammed her laptop shut.

"Don't you knock anymore?" she scolded her.

Sam followed her path toward Lena's desk.
"I did, but you were too caught up in your mind while making heart eyes at your screen. What were you looking at anyway?"
Sam reached for the laptop but was stopped by a slap on the hand from her friend.

"Just the latest results of our lab experiments- don't touch my laptop!"

"And you have a gloomy look on your face while looking at numbers?"

"Good results excite me!" Lena lied.

Sam's glare penetrated her friend in an attempt to mind-read her. Unsuccessfully, unfortunately.

"Anyway… grab your stuff, I'm dragging you to the training. I know your schedule is empty, so work is not an excuse!"
"Just because you cleared my schedule, doesn't mean I have no work left to do, Sam,” she sighed.
"We both know that you're just going to work ahead. You need some relief from your desk. Just come to the training with me."
"I'm not going."
"Kara prepared a fun and exciting training for all levels of skill. She'd love to see you there."
At that, Lena raised her voice: "I said: I'm not coming!"

Taken aback by Lena's strong reaction, Sam's first response was to leave her be, because she refused to deal with someone who yelled at her. But Lena rarely raised her voice, which told Sam there was more to this than her hard exterior.
Sam placed a chair across from Lena on the other side of her desk and sat down.

"Okay, what is this all about?"
"I just have a lot of work to do."
"Don't test my patience, Lena. Why don't you want to go to the training with me?"

Knowing Sam wouldn't drop it, Lena sighed deeply. She was too confused to even know what she wanted to talk about and what not. She didn't even know how she felt about her racing heart. Mostly scared… probably.

"Is it Kara?" Sam's voice had changed from tough love to empathic.

Lena thought about it for a moment. Surely, she had been thinking about Kara ever since she reappeared in her life a lot, but much had happened since she broke up with James.

"I think I miss Jimmy," Lena thought out loud. It must be because of him that she projected all these feelings on Kara.

Unhappy about Lena's answer, Sam squinted her eyes. Not able to accept the thought of Lena missing the guy Sam was so happy she separated from, she asked: "What exactly do you miss about him?"

Lena dropped her head.
"I don't know. I think just him being there when I come home from work. Feeling an arm around me when I'm sad… not being alone mostly," she admitted.

Sam couldn't help but sign in relief.
"Those things are not exclusively linked to him, Lena, but I can understand that you feel this way. If you're ever in need of an arm around you, my door is always open, you know that."

"I know." Lena nodded gratefully. "It's not the same but thanks anyway."

The urge to tell Lena that Kara was still single and had strong arms to fall into was strong but she promised Alex not to get involved, so she bit her tongue.

"Anyway… just come to the training, if only for distraction. I know how much you loved the sport, don't deny yourself that joy."

For a moment, a smile broke through on Lena's face, until it got overshadowed by a thoughtful frown.
"I'll think about it, okay? I have some things left to do first," she said.

Sam walked around the desk to hug Lena, even though she was unresponsive, Sam knew Lena could appreciate her affection.

"I'm going now, don't want to be late. See you on the field." Sam jokingly gave it one last try as she headed for the door.

Lena – of course – noticed and raised her eyebrow at her, flashing a smirk.

—---------------------------------------------------

Sam's words had gotten to her.
She pushed the feelings Kara caused aside and remembered the joy she had standing on the field. The thrill she felt after stopping a serious shot at the goal was even better than closing a successful business deal. While a deal called for a celebration with a good glass of scotch and the employees involved, a good save released Lena's primal instincts of balled fists and a scream to cheer.
She had missed that.
She missed the pride after kicking a well-aimed shot at a teammate who initiated a run for the other side of the field.
She missed the direct competition within the boundaries of the game.

In business as well as on the field, Lena played hard. Unlike the business world, Lena was able to remain friendships outside of the game. Well aware that this wasn't the default, Lena regularly took initiative to have a friendly conversation with an opponent she respected. This more often than not resulted in a good experience.
Not the way her contact with Kara turned into a good experience.
Kara was a whole other story.
Kara was special.

Her heartbeat accelerated when she heard a ball being kicked in the distance, fanatic yelling, and a whistle blowing. Her breath got caught in her throat for a moment, as her eyes welled with tears and the corners of her mouth pulled into an uncontrollable grin.
Lena stopped to take a deep breath. She pushed the silly tears of joy away but allowed her smile to stay.

She had missed the game more than she could have imagined.

When she walked between the fields of Ruby's soccer club — where Sam managed to rent a field and organize the tournament — Lena regretted not taking her sports gear. Dressed in a burgundy strapless dress and her Louboutins, she was unable to enter the field.
She had told herself that the CEO had no business demanding a spot on the team. This was meant to be fun for her employees.
Besides, if she was going to play there was only one position she wanted: back in the goal.
Lena was certain her position was a wanted one because of the lack of running. People with a lower physical condition think they could do it; they only need to have good reflexes and not be afraid of the ball.

About 40 to 50 people showed up for the open training, Lena noticed as she found a place behind the boarding of the field from where she could observe.
A lot of them would be let down, though — judging from their effort and attention — a
a dozen were there just for Kara.

The training Kara put the L-Corp employees through were variations of how Lena used to train with her team almost fifteen years ago.
After that, Kara made teams in which she put Alex and Sam on opposite teams.

As Lena expected, Sam held a strong defense, visibly frustrating Alex who had a hard time leading her team around Lena's right-hand woman.

At the next blow of Kara's whistle, she rearranged the teams. The group Lena labeled as Kara's fan group, had little ambition to make the team.
Lena was surprised to see Kara bench Sam. She had to be in the team, she was the best defense a team could have in Lena's opinion. On top of her qualities and passion for the game, Sam organized this all: she deserved to be there.

After a while of observing anonymously, Alex was the first to notice Lena's presence, just before the practice match started. Alex nudged Kara, gesturing in Lena's direction. The dark-haired Danvers was the first to wave, while a smile curled the lips of the blonde.
Kara called Jess — Lena’s trusted assistant — with her and handed her her whistle.
She started the match while Kara took a sprint to greet Lena.

"You came!" Kara beamed. "I'm glad you could make it."
Her blue eyes twinkled with excitement as she stood on the other side of the 4.5 feet high fence.

For a second Lena lost breath to her beauty. Having Kara stand in front of her all sweaty, excited and in her element was a sight for sore eyes.
Lena forced herself out of that distraction and looked over Kara's shoulder.

"You benched Sam," she noted, unhappy about her friend not playing.

Kara nodded before she turned around, casually leaning her elbows on the fence that separated them.

"I've seen enough of Sam, it's pretty clear."

"What do you mean, 'you've seen enough of her', Sam is absolutely brilliant in the field!" Lena responded insulted.

Without moving a muscle, Kara answered: "Yes, she is. She has the entire defense under control. But I need her to not be in the field to see who else would be fitted to stand next to her."

Embarrassed by her premature reprimanding, Lena released a soft: "Oh…"

"I…" Kara paused as she looked down for a second before turning her head to look at Lena, "I still need a goalie though…"

"No!" Lena answered quickly.

Kara ignored her answer, she continued, "Sam stops a lot in defense, but she can't stop everything."

"You have two perfectly fine goalies."
Lena denied herself the joy of playing for she was the CEO who didn't want to abuse her position to demand her spot between the bars.

Kara exhaled sharply, "well… let's just watch them for a little while. I'll let you be the judge of their perfection."

In silence, they watched the practice match.
It didn't take Lena long to conclude that both of them were dreadful.
One had the reflexes of a sloth and the other jumped away from the ball.
Frustration grew on her with each ball they missed.

"Oh come on! He only had to pick it up." Lena muttered to herself.

Kara muffled her chuckle behind her hand.
She had Lena exactly where she wanted her. The two goalies only tried the position because they wanted to participate without breaking a sweat. From how she remembered Lena, the green-eyed goalie was passionate about her position, she took pride in stopping balls, she definitely broke out a sweat, and she would never allow someone representing the position of the goalkeeper who lacked passion.

"Unbelievable," Lena sighed while shaking her head, certain that she would have stopped the ball that slowly rolled into the goal with ease.
Her hands were itching. She could imagine herself jumping for those balls as she remembered those good old days. Lena had to admit that the thought of standing in that goal again was appealing, but as a CEO, her spot had to be outside the field.

Kara searched for the right approach to keel Lena over. She could ask, or invite her to train together but she chose to abuse Lena's pride.

After another lazy mistake from one of the goalies, Kara said: "Yup! I know what to do now. I have picked the L-Corp goalie."
She pushed herself from the fence and walked away.

Lena's stomach shrank. They were both so bad that they would make a fool of the company and the rest of the team.
Even untrained and in high heels, Lena would do a hundred times better.

"Kara, wait!" Lena yelled.

Lena's voice sounded like music to her ears. Kara stopped walking but did not turn, instead she waited for Lena's further response. If she faced her, she might expose her desperation to pull Lena in.

"Those two can't defend my company in the goal. For the lack of a better option, I'll do it myself!"

Kara balled her fist in victory.
She looked over her shoulder back at Lena, "Meet me here Monday at seven. Don't forget your shoes!"

Lena realized she walked right into Kara's trap when she saw the smirk on her face.
Though she had to wonder if a part of her wanted to be trapped.

Chapter Text

Dressed for the occasion, nervous, and out of shape, Lena changed her shoes at the side of the field while she was waiting for Kara.
It had been a long time since she wore soccer shoes like these because she recently purchased them, she hoped they wouldn't cause blisters or other sore spots.

It wasn't Kara who ran late, it was Lena who made it very early. With still thirty minutes to go till seven, Lena started her warm-up.

Public transportation didn't treat Kara well. She had planned on being there forty-five minutes early to prepare for the training with Lena, but now she only had fifteen minutes left to make a good impression, if she was lucky.
Next to her motivation and excitement hid a little demon inside her head, goading her into thinking that Lena wasn't going to show up. Her sleepless night would have been for nothing.

That demon got silenced the moment Kara could lay eyes on the field.
On the side, Lena was stretching her limbs.
For a CEO with an office job, she's still remarkably limber, Kara thought.
She caught herself staring at the green-eyed goalie with an uncontrollable smile on her face.

As Lena sat on the ground, pushing her body to the limit to bring her nose as close as possible to her leg, she heard a familiar voice greet her.

"You've started already? That's great! Just continue while I get us some balls and cones."

As sudden as Kara appeared, she ran off again, leaving Lena to finish her stretches.
Lena truly hoped Kara would take her word on having done a proper warming up for she knew she could never keep up with the professional athlete in a warm-up session together.

Unfortunately for Lena, Kara's idea of a fun start to training was running around the field together.

"One of the perks… of being a goalie… less running!" Lena huffed between her breaths, making Kara chuckle.

"I can still remember how you drilled your team through warming up, the first time we met."
Kara's voice showed no trace of the physical effort she put into her exercise.

"You… do?"

"Of course I do. My coach scolded me for not being more disciplined like you. As much as you annoyed me, I was impressed above all. I took your example to heart and became more disciplined… When I say 'go' we sprint till the next line we cross."

Lena would have liked to have a normal conversation about their first encounter. She thought Kara was pretty disciplined already, and she gave her too much credit. After all; Kara had become a professional athlete and Lena didn't.
But Lena couldn't have that conversation for the lack of breath, instead, she grunted at the idea of sprinting.

"Go!"

Lena accelerated as much as she could, but Kara was yards ahead of her within the blink of an eye.

After the warming up and some more stretching — Kara couldn't have her green-eyed goalie injured — it was finally time to train Lena's rusted skills.

She started a bit insecure, but thanks to Kara's motivation, compliments, and carefully built-up training, Lena dared to dive for the balls again.

"Can I take a penalty?" Kara asked after doing different exercises for nearly two hours.

With heavy legs from exhaustion but full of adrenaline from playing the game she missed so much, Lena confidently answered: "Shoot!"

When asked what Lena's secret was to stopping so many penalties, she had never been able to answer.
From a young age, she had to learn how to read people, think quickly and anticipate every move they made; she used that skill in the field as well as in business.
Call it pure instinct, call it manipulation, or intimidation which she enchanted her opponents with, but Lena had been a master of killing penalties.
If it was physically possible to stop the ball, she'd do it.

Nerves rushed through Kara's veins when she placed the ball on the dot.
Ever since she started playing competitively, she had never missed a penalty; except for one.
She knew she had a great advantage over the green-eyed goalie because she became a professional while Lena was out of shape.
Yet, this was her second chance to score.
Feeling like that eager teenager again, Kara took a deep breath and cracked her knuckles. She looked from the ball to the goal, where she made eye contact with Lena: Big mistake!
It was the eyebrow!
Lena did the hypnotic thing with the eyebrow again which made Kara weak to her knees.
Laughing at the effect Lena had on her, Kara averted her gaze, shaking off what Lena had done to her.

Kara ran for the ball, shot it to the lower-left corner where she aimed, and to her horror saw Lena dive straight for her ball.
Her hands brushed the ball, changing its direction towards the sidebar, where it bounced into the goal.

Lena lay on the ground. She didn't need to watch whether the penalty was killed or not, she knew she lacked the power to tip the ball out of the goal.
Tired but pleased with herself because, after all this time, she still managed to dive into the right corner and touch the ball kicked by none other than penalty cannon Danvers.
Her body, exhausted from training, stayed down.

Kara threw her fist up in the air and cheered, feeling like she scored a winning goal in a championship game.
The intoxicating rush of victory faded when she noticed Lena wasn't getting back up.
Her sweat ran cold as she suddenly feared for Lena's health.

"Lena?" Kara rushed over, dropping to her knees next to the collapsed goalie. "Lena?"
She lay her hand between Lena's shoulder blades, feeling her body rise and fall with every heavy breath she took.

Lena wanted to turn around to face Kara, but her muscles refused further action.
"I can't move," Lena explained with a satisfied smile on her face, "I'm… too exhausted."

A hand reached under her shoulder. With a gentle tug, Kara turned her to her back.
That felt good, Lena had more air this way.
She spread her arms, feeling like the earth would embrace her body when it sank into the ground, for her limbs were too heavy to move.
Above her hovered the face of a concerned-looking, gorgeous blonde.
Lena chuckled as much as her lungs allowed her to.

"I was close to stopping your ball," she smiled proudly between her panting.

Relief took over when she heard her green-eyed goalie joking, though she had to admit; Lena was indeed close.

Her face flushed and sweaty from the hard training, and her green eyes sparkling with pride, enchanted Kara as they had done so many years ago.
This woman was impressive, even when she lay exhausted on the grass.
Her dark pink, soft lips invited Kara to meet hers once more.

As if a magnet was being pulled, Kara's body moved of its own accord when she leaned down.
She stopped mere inches from Lena's lips, shocked at what she was about to do to the woman who lay beneath her, paralyzed by exhaustion.

—------------------------------------------------------------

“And then she kissed you!”

When Kara got home flashing a grin, Sam left for a ‘surprise’ visit to her best friend’s place so fast that Lena hadn’t finished her shower yet.

“No, Sam! She did not kiss me! She got up to fetch me some water, cooled my wrists, helped me up, and walked with me to the dugout where we talked for a while.”

Lena did not admit that for a moment she thought Kara was indeed going to kiss her, nor did she tell Sam that she happily would have welcomed her lips.

—---------------------------------------------------------

“I joked that I got her out of her heels.”

After cleaning herself up, Kara sat down with Alex for a sister's night. She could not contain her excitement over the training she had with Lena, or – to be fair – her excitement over her time with Lena.

“After thanking me, she said that she wondered what I would look like in heels.”

“You often walk in heels!” Alex blurted out as she nuzzled deeper into the corner of the couch, enjoying the happiness her little sister radiated.

“I know, but she didn’t know that. So I told her about the official gala’s I need to go to sometimes, and…” Kara’s face turned red.

“And what?”

“I told her that she should come next time as my plus one.”

Alex laughed, “That’s bold of you. How did she respond?” She took her wine glass in hand as she listened to the rest of the story.

—-----------------------------------------------------

“How was I supposed to know that she and that male player Matthews weren’t a couple? The magazines still talk about them as if they are. Apparently, they only dated for four months when they decided that they weren’t going to work and parted as friends. She never denied the rumors, so that’s not all on me!” Lena defended herself while Sam laughed at her.

“So, let me sum this up: Kara basically asked you on a date to an official soccer event as her plus one, which is public, and you accepted nor rejected, instead you talked about her ex-boyfriend?”

“Well… I didn’t think she was that serious. It was just about her being in heels and all dressed up-”

“And wanting to show that off for you!” Sam finished Lena’s sentence.

Lena sighed.
“At least we had a nice training and she’s gonna train me twice a week till the tournament… In private,” Lena added with a smile on her face.

Chapter Text

The weekend of the tournament had finally arrived.
For the past few weeks, the L-Corp team had trained for this day. Because Kara couldn’t make it to every training session, Alex, Sam, and Jess — who turned out to be the soccer coach of her niece’s team — occasionally took over. Of the private training sessions she had with Lena, Kara only had to cancel one due to obligations to her own team.

Lena knew that she might meet some of her rivals on the field today. Amongst them was Andrea; her high school friend and teammate, James; her ex-boyfriend, and Morgan Edge; a misogynistic and narcissistic man, who had always seemed to feel threatened by Lena. Funny enough, Kara cracked her knuckles at the mention of his name as well.

“He used to sponsor my team and forced us to wear bikinis to his promotional events, I managed to buy my way out of that obligation with the money I received from my anonymous sponsor. I prefer to refer to that sponsor as ‘my guardian angel’ actually. That’s how much that money did for me,” Kara had explained when they talked about him.

Kara would not yet understand why Lena teared up at this confession.

With Kara fast and agile in forward, Alex controlling the midfield, Sam organizing the defense, and Lena being the final wall to pass, each line of the field had a strong player to fall back on. They easily survived the group phase, which contained three matches. One of those matches was against Obsidian North.

Lena was glad to see that Andrea hadn’t lost any of her fire, even though she could still play dirty, her passion burned bright.

The entire team had a healthy dinner, paid for by L-Corp, to celebrate a successful first day.
Kara had grown fond of her green-eyed goalie over the past few weeks, even though no moves had been made by either of them, she could feel her heart beat faster at the thought of seeing her again. After this tournament, when the formal connection was over, she would ask her out on a date, she promised herself. If Lena needed more time due to her recent split, Kara could wait. But she would not waste this chance of staying in contact with Lena again.
During dinner, Kara sat next to Lena because being in her orbit made her feel like she was so light she could float.

“As we are gathered here, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of you for your commitment to this project. Not only did you give it your all on the field, during training, and - if you haven’t played that many minutes yet - as moral support on the bench; I think I can speak for all of us when I say we’ve had a lot of fun together, and got to know each other on a whole new level,” Sam spoke to everyone, while Lena’s hand was desperately searching under the table for Kara’s touch by faux accident.

She did not dare to look up from her menu when Kara’s fingers gently slid between hers, answering her initiative with a soft squeeze. Lena did not dare to look up from her menu, afraid to make eye contact with anyone, giving away her little secret under the table.
The tickle in her tummy felt so childishly good that she wanted to keep it all to herself.

“So, let’s raise our glass to victory, fun, friendship, and love!” Sam ended her speech.

At the last word, Lena’s head shot up, feeling guilty as charged.
Sam winked at her before shifting her attention to Alex.
Looking around the table, nobody seemed to have noticed the little one-on-one between the two best friends.
From the corner of her eye, she peeked at Kara, whose face had turned red as she stared at the empty plate in front of her.
Lena caressed the back of Kara’s hand with her thumb, drawing a shy smile from her.

Over food, compliments were shared about the games they played and the confidence they had for the semi-final against Edge Global, and – if all went well – the final match against either CatCo or Obsidian North – again.

“Every team scores. We were the only team to keep the zero!” Kara complimented the defense and her green-eyed goalie.

“True, but we didn’t have to defend against you,” Lena complimented Kara.
“You would have stopped those kicks.”
“I beg to differ.”
“Lena, you were on fire today!”

Alex quietly shook her head.
“I can’t watch this anymore,” she quietly said to Sam.
“Can I interfere?”
“No!”

Sam chuckled, entertained by the words of admiration Kara and Lena threw at each other, while Alex was slowly losing her patience.

“Are they stupid? Do they think we don’t know or do they still don’t know?”
“They don’t know, yet,” Sam answered, “Lena might seem like a closed-off person, but to the people she trusts, she’s an open book. She would have told me.”

She had told Sam about the first time they hit the showers together, and how weird yet natural it felt to share such a space with Kara. She had told Sam about their first hug, which came a few days after the first shower. Lena had trouble letting Kara go, but she got the feeling that Kara didn’t like to part either.
After the last private training before the tournament, they had dinner together. According to Lena, this wasn’t a date; it was just closure to their training sessions and found friendship.
That was all Sam got: Lena called Kara her friend.

—----------------------------------------------------------

The semi-final started with high motivation and good hopes but after the fifth foul against Kara, Lena wished for nothing more than this match to be over. Winning from scum like Edge was not worth Kara’s career.

During half-time, Alex was already wrapped in a loud discussion with Kara when Lena entered the dressing room.

“I’m not backing down. Edge does not deserve to win, so I refuse to let him have that!” Kara went against Alex’s worries.

“I’ve got the feeling he’s not in this for the win, Kara. This feels personal. You’ve been attacked on the field by several players, all reckless. It’s a matter of time before one of them kicks you into the hospital,” Alex said.

“Don’t be silly, Alex. He can’t be that bad.”

Lena crossed her arms in front of her chest.
“He once poisoned me, Kara.”

Kara’s eyes grew large.
“He did what?”

“He thought that I tempered with his car. I was lucky that Alex was visiting Sam when it happened,” Lena did not want to dwell on the attempt on her life, “Please, Kara. Get out of the field before he injures you beyond recovery.”
Her lower lip trembled out of anger and genuine concern for Kara’s safety.

Kara could handle Alex’s worries, she was used to them, but the look in Lena’s eyes pierced her heart.
She placed her hands on Lena’s upper arms, “Lena, look at me. I’ll be fine. These people aren’t professionals, I can handle them.”

Her worry turned to anger when Kara stayed ignorant of the threat.
“It’s because they are amateurs that you are in serious danger. They don’t know what they can do. If Edge promised them a bonus for getting you out of the field, people can go to extremes with serious consequences. I do not want you in the field any longer. Get out or I’ll withdraw our team, damn the consequences!”

She had left Kara with no choice.
Even though she was annoyed with being overruled like that, and she never backed down from competition, a part of her knew that Lena was right. She had seen careers end over an injury, the thought of that happening to her silenced her for a moment.
Kara inhaled sharply, pulling her hands away from Lena as she turned for the door.

“Liam, get ready. Do a proper warming up, and don’t forget to stretch. I’ll start the second half. Pull me out when you are ready. I’ll survive another ten minutes if I have to.”
She burst out the door, frustrated by the situation and the idea that they might not win over foul play.

Lena felt Kara’s anger sting. She didn’t want to force her into this situation, but it was the only way she knew to protect her. She knew that Kara’s will to win as a team was bigger than her ego, withdrawing the team would eliminate every chance of winning.

They were just a few minutes into the second half when Edge’s team fired a shot at the goal.
Kara knew from the moment the ball left the opponent’s foot: Lena would catch this ball with ease and they could do what they trained for in their one-on-one sessions.

During one of their after talks, Lena told her that she got the biggest thrill from creating a counter by catching the ball against all odds and being able to take a well-placed shot to the other side of the field where one of her teammates would be running toward.
In the next training, Kara found a way to train in this specific situation, just for fun.
Now, the perfect opportunity presented itself to them, so Kara ran.

As predicted, Lena did what she was trained to do. Her shot landed yards in front of Kara, exactly where she wanted the ball. With Kara’s almost inhuman speed, no defender would be able to take that ball away from her.
Faster than average legs could carry a human, Kara broke out towards the other side of the field. In a flash, she saw movement in the corner of her eye.
With a forceful blow, Kara’s feet were swept from under her. Because of her speed, her crash into the ground caused her to tumble a few yards.

Lena saw how her ball crossed the field, landing where she wanted it. Kara’s response was so flawless that Lena’s heart jumped even before the goal was scored. Knowing Kara, she would not miss.
A defender tried to keep up with her, but Lena was sure he would fail.
Everything turned silent when Lena saw him plant his two feet, stretched in front of him, into Kara’s thigh and calf. This was the career-ending foul Lena had feared for her. The one that could snap her leg like a twig and injure her beyond repair.
Sound returned with Kara’s heartbreaking cry of pain ringing in her eardrums as she rolled over the field.
Lena did not wait for the referee to stop the game, she started running for the woman she grew to adore over the past few weeks.

“Buy your way out of that one!” Edge, who was coaching his team, screamed from the side.

Even though Alex wished for nothing more than to drop down to the ground next to her sister to cure her wounds, the threat of the opposite team still inflicting harm on her was too great. Alex and Sam stood side by side, pushing anyone off who dared to come too close until the referee stepped in.

Lena ignored the tense situation that surrounded them, for her priority was with Kara.
She dropped to her knees next to the groaning athlete, who was grabbing for her leg.

“I’m here Kara, hold on to me.”
From a position half behind her, Lena draped her arm around Kara in an attempt to calm her down.

With Lena’s arm in front of her, she could draw her attention away from her pain and fear by clenching onto Lena for dear life.

“I should have listened. I’m sorry,” Kara whimpered between gritted teeth.

To provide her with more comfort, Lena sat behind Kara wanting to comb her fingers through her blonde hair, but her gloves were in the way.

“That’s not important now. Try to keep calm, Alex will take a look at you in a minute and you will be alright,” Lena risked a false promise to soothe her.

“It doesn’t feel alright, Lena. It’s bad. It’s-”
Kara’s breathing became too uneven to continue talking.

Using her teeth, Lena got rid of her glove so she could caress Kara skin on skin.
“Concentrate on your breathing, darling. Concentrate on my touch. Everything else will come later. Right now: You’re in my arms!”

—------------------------------------------

"You've got some strong muscles to keep those bones together, Kar, I have no reason to believe anything is broken. For your muscles and tendons, you should visit your team specialist after the weekend," Alex said as she pressed an ice pack to the swollen bruise on Kara's thigh.

The sisters had the first aid room to themselves, although Sam had to drag Lena out to gain that level of privacy.

"I can't believe they stopped the game because of my injury," Kara said as she shook her head in disbelief.

Alex sat down next to her sister, who lay on an old hospital bed the soccer club used for emergencies.

"It wasn't just your injury, you know that. The way they played against us – against you – had nothing to do with good sportsmanship or charity. Sam and Lena will make sure there will be consequences."

"Our heroes," Kara sighed with a shy smile.

Adored by the blush that spread across her sister's face, she broke her own rule of not interfering.

"So… you and Lena?"

Kara's smile faded.
"There's no me and Lena… I like her, but- Oh gosh Alex, I've made such a fool of myself! I was panicking, thinking my career was over. She cared for me so tenderly and now I'll probably just limb for a few weeks before I'm back in the field. I overreacted so dramatically."
She hid her face behind her hands.

"I'm sure she'll be relieved to hear that."
Alex nudged Kara's shoulder with her fist.
"The way she held you-"

Kara bit her lower lip.
"I can't lie: I'd fake an injury to be in her arms like that again."

Alex chuckled, "You're in deep, Kar. Why on earth aren't you two dating yet?"

With a groan, Kara pushed herself to a sitting position.
"I wanted to ask her after the final after we won because I was so sure we would… I planned on asking her on a date. If she doesn't like me that way… we could always celebrate, you know?"

Alex raised her eyebrows.

"Not like that!" Kara corrected herself.

"I wasn't saying anything," Alex chuckled, "but seriously… Just ask her, Kara. The way she took care of you out there was more than friends do."
She rubbed her sister's back in encouragement.

"When we first met, I held her so she could breathe again after she took a blow," Kara said while staring ahead with a dopey grin on her face.

"I guess the circle is round then… or as Sam likes to call it: meant to be!" Alex put on a voice, lovingly mocking her girlfriend.

Kara scoffed, "Instead of offering her the player who brought her team to victory, I'm broken now. Why would she want to date me?"

"Because you're the broken one, silly!"

Kara did not dare to hope that Alex was right. She had been praised and loved for being a soccer player for so long that it would be hard to believe that Lena fell for her: just Kara."

"Shall I let her in now? I bet she's worried about you."
Alex couldn't help but tease her sister with a wink.

When Alex opened the door, Lena and Sam were waiting outside.

"You can go see her," Alex said to Lena.

Lena shot a worried glance in Sam's direction, who nodded her encouragement.
Without saying a word, Lena strolled past Alex.

Alex closed the door behind her, giving them some privacy.

"How is she?" Sam asked.

"Totally smitten, but afraid that she will be rejected because she was so dramatic and is broken."
Alex wrapped her arm around Sam, walking away from the first aid room.

"She's broken?" Sam asked, shocked by her girlfriend's light tone about the end of Kara's career.

"No!” Alex scoffed. “She took a firm blow, she might not be able to play for a while, but I've seen athletes recover from way worse. Kara is a tough cookie. I'm not too worried." She kissed Sam's temple to reassure her.

—-----------------------------------------------

Lena stood inches from the door, unsure what to say, so she did nothing more than stare at Kara, hoping her medical state would somehow reveal itself to her.

"Your pass was amazing, Lena. I just knew you would catch that ball and this would be your moment!" Kara’s praise broke the silence. Her sky blue eyes sparkled with pride.

To repress a blush, Lena fidgeted with her fingers.

"Thanks… I'm sure you would have scored if not for-" Lena tilted her head to the side and sighed.
"Seriously, Kara, how are you?"
She finally found the courage to approach her injured friend.

Kara dropped her gaze, ashamed of the state Lena had seen her in.

"I'm okay, I guess… According to Alex, chances of a fracture and permanent damage are slim, but I'll have to contact my team doctor tomorrow and we'll see."
She looked up at Lena, who was now standing by her side.
"I'm sorry, Lena. I overreacted."
Kara scoffed, "I made quite a scène out there."

Lena couldn't let Kara invalidate herself like that.
She shook her head.

"You were in pain and confused by the sudden loss of ground beneath your feet. There's nothing to apologize for. You panicked and I get that. When my brother got arrested, I saw my whole world crumble. That's terrifying."

Kara bit her lip and averted her gaze.

Lena gently placed her hand on Kara's leg, causing her to flinch with a pained groan immediately.

"Judging from your reaction and the angry bruise, you're still in pain. You don't have to put on a brave face for me. Please, feel free to be you with me."

Tears formed in Kara's eyes at the kind words she didn't know how badly she needed to hear them from Lena.

"I'm scared," she admitted with a brittle voice.

Lena sat down beside her on the bed so she could wrap her arms around Kara.

"That's okay. I'm here… As long as you want me, I'm not going anywhere!" Lena promised.
She deeply wished that Kara would have her.

Kara rested her head against Lena's shoulder. Even though Lena was still a little sweaty from the game, Kara couldn't help but be mesmerized by her scent all over again.

"You know… I'd love to stay in your arms, but I think I'm gonna hit the showers. This leg won't be of any use in the field," Kara tried to lighten up the mood.

She lifted her head to face Lena. Their faces were so close that Kara could feel Lena's breath warming her lips. The gap between them — no wider than two inches — tempted Kara to close the distance.
She didn't. She couldn't. Lena deserved the world and Kara was going to ask her out first, instead of forcing herself upon her.

"Do you need any help?"

Kara got hypnotized by the movement of Lena's lips without catching what she had said immediately.

"What? Eh… with what?" Kara pulled away when the meaning of Lena's words finally penetrated her thoughts.

Lena chuckled, "With your shower. I don't want you to fall… Besides, there's nothing there I haven't seen before."
Lena teased, even though she wasn't sure if she overstepped a boundary.
Judging from the coloring of Kara's face, Lena felt she needed to rectify that.

"I mean… it wouldn't be weird… for me. I can keep my clothes on and carry you… or support you… or just place a chair under the shower for you to sit… or undress you…"

Kara laughed at the stammering Luthor.
"You just made it weird!"

Lena bit her lip as she looked away.

"But thank you for offering your help. I think I will be fine though. Besides, you have a final to prepare for!"

"I don't want to."
This time it was Lena's turn to slump against Kara, who responded to her need for attention with a protective arm around her.

"Is it because a certain someone plays for CatCo?" Kara asked, knowing well that Lena's ex played for that team.

"I don't want to face him. He'll try too hard to prove himself. I could have handled that with you on my team, but…" she whined.

Kara stopped Lena with her hand on her jaw.
"There's an upside to me not being able to play." She placed her forehead against Lena’s and whispered, "I can sit behind the goal and be close to you all game long."

—-------------------------------------------

Lena refused the position of captain over the team of her everyday employees.
Thankfully, Alex volunteered, who also had her fair share of captain experiences, when she was the number one in her high school days.

"Did you pick this spot for the view?" Ruby asked as she sat down next to Kara behind the goal where Lena was stretching her muscles for the last time that day.

"What? I- pfff… no!" Kara stammered.

Ruby laughed at her.
"She's pretty, aunt Kara, even I can see that."

At that moment, Lena looked over her shoulder to wave at Kara, who joyfully waved back.

"Is she your girlfriend?" Ruby bluntly asked.

"Can you keep your voice down?" Kara hissed, afraid that Lena would hear them.

"I guess that means: No!" Ruby concluded.

Without Kara, the L-Corp team had trouble scoring.
With Sam holding a strong defense and Lena stopping balls like she was born to be a goalie, the match remained without scores from either side.

During the match, James often sought Lena’s attention. Whether it was to flex his muscles, give her an irrelevant compliment, unnecessarily touch her, or intimidate her by pumping himself up face to face with her; it all infuriated Kara.

If it wasn't for her injury, she would have stood between them to shield Lena from his inappropriate behavior.

During a corner close to the end of regular playtime, he placed himself close behind Lena, laying his hand against her butt.
"I know you miss this!" He said softly to her as he squeezed.

Lena could have stopped the game, and maybe she should have because James was way out of line.
James was also a lot taller than her, and with that, he was a threat to score. As long as he was assaulting her, he wasn't focused on the game. To Lena, his behavior only fueled her determination to win.

She ignored him and was able to punch the ball away far enough so Sam could start with a new round of ball possession.

Lena knew that Kara must have seen what happened. She also saw that Lena did nothing to stop it.
Her stomach turned with a feeling of guilt.
If anyone would have been entitled to touch Lena like that, it wouldn't have been James.
Not anymore.

When the ball was steadily played far away from her goal, Lena turned to search for Kara's gaze.
Those gorgeous sky blue eyes stared at her as if she had just seen a ghost.

"I'm sorry," Lena mouthed at her.

Kara shook her head, but Lena had already turned her back on her.
She shouldn't be sorry, Kara thought, this is all on him.

With the whistle blowing to end the regular play time, Kara called out for Lena. As she tried to get to her as quickly as she could, she cursed the leg that refused to carry her weight.
Luckily, Lena waited.

She waited, so Kara could wrap her arms around her, tell her how wonderful she was performing, and how proud she was.

Lena sank into Kara's embrace, relieved that she wasn't mad about her not stopping James from touching her.

According to the rules determined for this tournament a final match that ended in a tie, would be decided on penalties, which meant this was Lena's time to shine.

The team gathered halfway the field, where Jess — the coach — picked the players who would take the penalties. They supported each other standing side by side with arms wrapped around each other.

Kara joined as moral support, where she joined the team between Alex and Lena.

"I know how good you are, Lena. You can do this for L-Corp!" Kara motivated her.

Lena smiled, "I can only win, Kara. As a player, you'll be a loser when you miss. But when you stop a ball as the goalie, you win… I can't lose!"

With her head high, Lena walked to the goal, determined to stop the first ball - which she did.

After four penalties from the CatCo side, Lena had stopped two of them.
Unfortunately, the L-Corp team had also missed two when Alex walked on to take the 4th shot.

"If Alex scores, I'm sure James will take the last shot," Lena said to Kara, "his ego wants the glory of the winning goal, and I refuse to give it to him!"

Lena had her arm around Kara's waist, and with her thumb she caressed Kara's side, turning her insides to jelly in the process.

When Alex scored in the low left corner, Sam cheered the loudest and proudest.

"He's gonna peacock," Kara noted during the short celebration of the score.

Indeed, James walked over to them.

"Can I use you to provoke him?" Lena asked for only Kara to hear.

Kara would do anything to spite him. She did not like him. He did not treat Lena well, nor did he respect her as she deserved.

"Always!"

James crossed his arms in front of his chest, flexing his muscles as he stood in front of Lena and Kara.

"You can go home with a winner tonight, Lena," he said.

Lena knew very well that he insinuated himself in that position.
She raised her eyebrow and smirked.
His attempt to play with her mind was too easy to turn around.

"Oh," she said, "I definitely will!"

Lena turned to Kara. Without further warning, she pressed her lips against hers.

Kara did not expect this to be Lena's idea of using her, but as she felt full, soft lips merge with hers, she figured that she would allow Lena to use her like that anytime she needed.

The kiss was too short.
Lena pulled back, leaving Kara wanting more.

"A kiss for good luck!" Lena smiled at her before she ran towards the goal.

Kara remained with her mouth left agape, and a soft whimper escaped.

Sam was too distracted to see James skyrocket the ball high over the goal.
She witnessed Kara's face turn red while her soul left her body to dance on a rainbow surrounded by glittery pink clouds.

Lena had crossed a line she shouldn't have, in Sam's opinion.

Alex stood petrified as she could feel her sister's body radiating heat. The timing might have been odd, but Alex was happy that the two of them finally took that next step.

Proudly, Lena walked back to the group.
James had just humiliated himself, if Sam would score now, he would turn into the biggest joke of the tournament.

On her way to eleven meters, Sam snatched the ball from Lena's hands.

"Coward!" She called her.

Lena could feel her disapproval shiver down her spine.

"What?" she asked.
Still, on her high from preventing James from scoring, she could not imagine what she did wrong.

"We'll talk later! First I have to win this thing." Sam strolled away.

Unlike many others, Sam had learned to turn anger into power. Many would lose focus over strong emotions, but during her life, Sam's survival depended on not letting her emotions lead.
With anger in her system, her shot would only gain more speed.

With some distance from the ball, Sam shot a glance at the bottom left corner where Alex scored before her.
She ran towards the ball and kicked it.
As she counted on, the goalie jumped to the bottom left corner, totally missing the ball Sam shot straight ahead.

The team ran for Sam to celebrate the player who brought the L-Corp victory.
Lena stayed behind to support Kara, who could not put weight on her leg any longer.

Only Alex was able to draw a genuine smile from Sam.
She did not care that they were surrounded by so many, everyone was allowed to see how proud she was of her woman who kept her head clear during the most important moment of the tournament.

"It always takes a while before the team realizes the importance of their goalie, the winning score is celebrated first," Kara said as she leaned more heavily on Lena.

"I'm not in this for the glory, Kara. I got what I came here for."
She shook Kara lightly, not getting into the deeper meaning of her words.

—-----------------------------------------

Sam had given the team a speech of gratitude in which she pulled Kara forward to say a word.

From her heart she spoke about the joy and amazement she went through while training with the L-Corp team, she thanked them for the opportunity and the open arms she was welcomed in.
Kara directed those last words towards Lena, who averted her gaze to not get lost in Kara's eyes while blushing bashfully.

Soon after the award ceremony, where Kara insisted Lena and Sam accept the trophy, Sam took Lena aside while the rest gathered around the professional athlete and the trophy.

"What's your problem?" Lena asked directly when they found a place in private.

"That was such a Luthor move!" Sam bit at her.

Sam rarely called Lena by her last name, since the load surrounding that name was heavy and distant from the person Lena was.
This time, Sam meant to insult her.

"Excuse me?" Lena was taken aback by her best friend's attack.

"You hid the truth within your lies, coward!"
Sam knew she promised Alex to not intervene, but she couldn't hold her tongue any longer.
"We both know that you fancy that woman, yet you kiss her with the excuse of provoking your ex. You lied to her, saying it was just to use her."

"Kara didn't mind!" Lena argued.

Sam had to count to ten not to face-palm herself into a concussion.

"Of course, she didn't mind. Kara would do a backflip with her injured leg if you asked her to."

"Why would she-"

Sam raised her eyebrows as she waited for Lena's penny to drop.

Lena's mouth fell agape.
"Oh…" she outed as she understood what Sam was trying to make clear to her.

"Yes: Oh!" Sam could finally let go of her frustration.

"I grew fond of her, and she deserves so much better than that fake pretends kiss you gave her, Lena. So, I don't care when and I don't care how, but you are going to make that up with Kara today. Give her the kiss she deserves to get. One that's all about her!"

—-------------------------------------------------

Kara hadn't seen Lena since the award ceremony.
As most of the team headed to the showers to freshen up, Kara's eyes kept scanning the fields for Lena without success.

"She's not in the dressing rooms either," Alex informed her little sister.

Kara slumped back in the booth of the sports café.

"It's not fair, Alex… I was going to ask her out and… She disappeared on me, again!"

The crack in Kara's voice pierced Alex's heart, for she was certain that her sister could find love with Lena, who now rejected her by leaving without a trace.

"Again?" Alex drew patterns on Kara's back to comfort her.

"When we were teenagers… It took me some time to make peace with her leaving without saying goodbye. She left nothing more than a note to thank me. Now, I-" Kara sniffed, "I feel like that dumb rejected teenager again."

Alex was determined to have a serious talk with Lena about breaking her sister's heart like this.
Unfortunately, for now, she could only hold her.

"Hey!" Sam joined the booth that was clouded with emotions.
"What's the matter?" She asked.

Kara hid her face in the fabric of her sister's shirt, not wanting to expose her vulnerability to Sam.

"We can't find Lena anywhere. It looks like she just left," Alex informed Sam.

Lena did leave, indeed. Sam knew.

She nodded with a mischievous smile.

"I think it might be better to head home as well," Sam suggested, "to give that leg of yours some rest."

—------------------------------------------------

What Kara expected to be a big celebration, turned out to be a bigger deception than she could have imagined.

In her mind, the worst-case scenario was losing the tournament and taking Lena out to at least celebrate a good time. But in reality, Lena didn't answer her phone or even read her text messages.

Dressed in a blue superhero t-shirt and red boxers, Kara had settled herself on the couch, moping about Lena.

To Kara's disappointment, Ruby had a last-minute sleepover at a friend's place. She was the best at distracting Kara, but now she had to draw all her joy from the happy couple; Alex and Sam.

"How's your leg?" Alex asked as she took a seat in the chair next to the couch where Kara lay.

"It twitches, my muscles cramp, and my knee hurts," she answered while staring at the ceiling.

"There's a lotion in that bathroom cabinet that works wonders on your muscles, massage it gently and it will ease the pain."

"Great. Can you get it for me?" Kara whined monotonously.

Sam stumbled down the stairs with a suitcase.

"No, I can't," Alex answered, "Sam surprised me with a night away combined and a spa day."

Kara pushed herself up in sudden realization.
"You're leaving me alone?"

"You've lived on your own for years," Sam answered, waving Kara’s worries away.

"But I'm hurt!"

"It's not like you haven't been hurt before."

"But-" Kara didn't mean the hurt in her leg, though she was too proud to admit her heartbreak over her green-eyed goalie.
"But I'm hungry," she whimpered.

"I'm not your cook, Kara. Order yourself something!" Alex teased.

"Alex, I have trouble getting up, how do I get to the door in time?" Kara searched for excuses to keep them from going.

"You'll figure it out, you're resourceful," Sam complimented her with a smile.

"I need help getting up the stairs!"
Kara couldn't believe everyone was leaving her on a night like this.
She felt horrible.

"Sleep on the couch," Alex laughed.

"That's not funny!"

Kara's desperation caused Alex to feel sorry for her.
She changed her tone when she comforted her sister with a hug.

"I'm sorry, Kara. But I'm positive that you will be fine tonight, even if you don't feel like that now. Trust me!" She kissed the top of her sister's head.

"Alex, we need to leave. It's time," Sam said as she put her phone away.

"If your night is truly terrible, you can call me and I'll come back for you, okay?" Alex promised Kara.

Kara nodded, knowing that she would not want to rob her sister of a date night.

"We'll be home after dinner tomorrow. Don't forget to call your team doctor!" Alex said as Sam dragged her to the hallway.

Since Kara's back was towards the hall, she did not see them leave, but the closing of the front door was the loneliest sound she had heard in many years.
Kara usually didn't need people around to be comfortable, she learned to rely on herself as she was often far away from her loved ones.
On rare occasions — like this evening — Kara needed her loved ones around to feel safe.

In her fragile state, air wrapped around her throat, suffocating her. The tightness around her chest became painful. Her eyes filled with tears as she could no longer fight her emotions.

—--------------------------------------------------

With the door closing behind her, Lena stood petrified. Her anxiety took the best of her as her mind ran over everything she could and shouldn't say.
How to start?
How to end?
How to not make a fool of herself?

She had dressed in her most handsome suit, redressed to a short, black dress, and eventually ended up with a strapless, bright red dress that brought attention to her cleavage – a sight she knew would be appreciated. She made sure to look her absolute best tonight.

Lena ran a billion-dollar company, but human interaction in her private life could take the best of her.

Her heart skipped a beat when she heard a loud sob coming from the living room.

This was the shift in atmosphere that Lena needed to take action.

"Kara?"
Lena placed the food and flowers she brought on the cabin in the hallway, so she could rush at her with empty hands.
"Kara," Lena called out her name again.

Startled by the other present in the room, Kara propped herself up on her shoulders, clenching her teeth together in an attempt to smother her sobs.
Unsuccessfully.

Lena sat on the edge of the couch next to Kara, placing one hand against her upper arm while the other hovered a few inches from Kara’s teary face.

“I startled you, I’m sorry. Are you okay? I can leave if you want to,” Lena rambled.

A few minutes ago, Kara felt the world cave in on her, sucking her into an abyss of loneliness; now, she was looking at the only one she wanted near.
Her mind had trouble processing the sudden change, while her body pulled Lena into a tight hug.

“Don’t leave. I don’t want to be alone!” Kara whimpered.

Lena answered Kara’s plea with her arms wrapping around the trembling blonde.
“I’m not going anywhere. As long as you want me, I’ll be here.”

Kara surrendered to Lena’s embrace with a deep sigh of relief. She nuzzled her cheek against Lena’s collarbone, allowing herself to let her tears flow until all her sorrow was spilled.
As she slowly came to her senses, she realized how bare Lena’s skin was, immediately pulling her gaze down to check her view.

With Kara starting to move beneath her touch, Lena asked, “What’s wrong, Kara? Is it your leg?”

Unable to pull her eyes from Lena’s cleavage, Kara nodded half a lie.
Sure, Kara was worried about her leg, but most of her tears fell over Lena’s absence.

"What are you doing here? How did you get in?" She managed to say with just one sob in between, finally able to force herself into eye contact.

Even with her puffed, red eyes, and her teary face, Lena still thought Kara was gorgeous. The blue in her eyes popped even brighter.

"Sam and Alex let me in," she answered as she placed the palm of her hand against Kara's cheek.
Lena bit her lip while she searched for the right words to say.

"I came to apologize," Lena said while bowing her head in shame, "I shouldn't have kissed you."

Kara felt like a fist punched her in the gut. To her, it was the best moment of the day, and Lena called it a mistake.

Lena pulled her hands to herself so she could play with her fingers, "you deserve to be taken out on a date, treated like the wonder you are, be completely wooed, and then be kissed only if you want to… but it should be all about you. Not about provoking some ex," she scoffed at her own stupidity.

"Oh…" Kara sighed, "That's okay. I didn't mind… and I didn't like him anyway. I think you deserve way better."
She forced a smile out of herself. Kara believed that she could be a better match for Lena, she even thought they were close to getting together, but an apology for the kiss shattered those expectations.

Lena smiled bashfully.
"I think we can both agree on that," she chuckled.

Even if Lena didn't want more than a friendship, having her around made Kara feel better. She could even enjoy the silence that followed in Lena's presence.

Lena swallowed, "That's actually why I'm here…" She forced herself to look at Kara. "I've been meaning to ask you out on a date, but since you're injured I thought-" Lena stood up and walked back into the hallway.

Kara followed her movement in confusion, afraid that she would leave despite her promise to stay.

Lena picked the flowers back up.
"I'd bring the date to you. If you'd have me of course."

Gaping like a fish, Kara forgot how to use words.

"I also brought potstickers and ice cream. Sam mentioned that it's your favorite."

Kara let her eyes roll over the beautiful brunette, who had made an effort to look her best.

"I feel so underdressed for this date!" Kara snickered through her last tears.

"You only need a red towel around your shoulders and I can call you my Supergirl," Lena joked, "I also have more comfortable home wear with me if that makes you feel better, but I wanted to make myself pretty for you first."

Kara found her eyes darting over Lena's roundings, lingering a bit longer on her chest.

"You surely succeeded! I’d like to enjoy the view a little longer if that’s okay with you?" Kara said, drawing a chuckle from the gorgeous brunette.

She tore her gaze away from Lena's figure to lock eyes with her green-eyed goalie.

"You mentioned potstickers?"

"I surely did. Does that mean the date is on?" Lena raised her eyebrow.

Kara turned on the couch — ignoring the pain it caused in her leg — to make room for Lena, who understood the hint and sat next to her.

"About that kiss?" Kara bit her lower lip as she saw Lena's eyes travel down.

"Using you to provoke him was such a lie," Lena admitted as she forced herself to lock eyes with her supergirl.
"I used him as an excuse to kiss you."

"So… make it up to me!" Kara challenged her.

Lena gently placed her hand on Kara's uninjured thigh, feeling her muscles flex beneath her touch.
"Kara Danvers, can I kiss you?"

Her heart raced with excitement as Lena's thumb caressed her skin.

Patiently, Lena waited for Kara's permission.
Instead, Kara brought her hand up to Lena's neck, guiding their faces together.

Even though this wasn't the first time their lips met that day, it was the first time Lena got to enjoy the taste of Kara without distraction.
This wasn't for show, nor victory.
This kiss was for pleasure, and maybe even for love.

As they parted, Kara rested her forehead against Lena's.

"My green-eyed goalie," she said softly, finally letting out the nickname she harbored for her ever since they met.

Lena was touched by the sweet words of affection.

“Did you just call me; your green-eyed goalie?” She smiled with a blush creeping on her face.

Kara nodded before she kissed her again.

"You're a keeper!" Kara confirmed.