Archive of Our Own ^beta

‘Tap’

‘Tap tap’

‘Tap tap tap tap’

Lena’s pen makes the softest of noises as it hits the stack of papers on her desk awaiting a signature that’s seeming less and less likely to come with each passing ‘tick’ of the clock. 

Ever since Lena was made CEO of L-Corp she’s been busier than ever, and her overworking has definitely taken its toll on her. Just yesterday Jess commented on how tired she looked, going so far as to call Lena’s driver to come pick her up at only 8:30. 

“Come on. Focus,” Lena berates herself, blinking back to the work in front of her. She shakes her head to clear it of the fog that refuses to dissipate before signing the paper on the top of the pile with a flourish, even if the finished product is a little sloppy. Lena flips the flimsy piece to the ‘signed’ pile and stares at the next sheet for a couple of seconds before resuming her tapping with a sigh. Only fifty-plus signatures to go. 

On any other day, Lena would have no problem reading over and signing a couple hundred documents for some project or another she’s working on, but today something’s off. Lena’s pretty sure she knows what that ‘something’ is.

She’s been exhausted, achy and clammy all day, only really feeling up to drinking water in small sips, and she woke up this morning with a headache so bad she was tempted, for the first time in her life, to take a day off of work. But she didn’t, so now she’s here, signing off on a new project that she can’t remember the purpose of (maybe she shouldn’t be signing off on it, some rational part of her brain supplies). 

As she swallows down the nausea that’s been rising and falling in her chest for hours, Lena glances at the clock. 11:45. A small groan escapes the woman’s lips as she slumps forward, raven-haired head in hands. 

She’s almost certain that this is some sort of sick joke, Jess or Kara or Lex, even, thinking it’d be funny to set the clock so that the hands just inch along, almost certain that it’s definitely at least three already because there’s no way she can endure this torture for another nine hours. But she knows it’s not. Jess and Kara care too much about her health to do anything like this and Lex has bigger things to worry about than pranking his little sister; being in jail, for instance. Plus, the sun’s position in the sky tells her it’s impossible for it to be any time other than what the clock says. 

As another wave of nausea crashes over her, Lena closes her eyes, trying (and failing miserably) to simply will the awful feeling away. It only takes a few minutes for the tremors wracking her body and twisting knots in her stomach to dissipate, but by the time they do, there are little wet spots on the paper in front of her where tears, squeezed from her eyes by the effort of keeping her dinner in its place, have fallen. 

“Shit.” Lena mutters to herself. All she really wants to do is go home and sleep, but the stack of papers on her desk demands her attention and she has a lunch date with Kara in half an hour which she refuses to miss; she really does want her friend to like her and after cancelling the last two dates Kara had suggested, she feels like she owes it to her to make it to this one. So she stays in her seat, because as much as her body begs to differ, she is not sick. Lena Luthor, Luthors in general, don’t get sick. That much she did manage to learn in her time living with Lionel, Lillian and Lex. She’s never missed a day of work in her life, and on the very, very rare occasion she has a cold, she simply chugs a dose of DayQuil and she’s good to go. Which is why the next time the nausea hits, only a few minutes later, Lena powers through, like she always does. 

Except that this time she can feel the contents of her stomach sloshing up into her throat, can feel the sting of bile climbing higher and higher in her esophagus, and, oh, that’s new, there’s a rush of saliva flooding her mouth and an acidic taste and then she retches. The front of her shirt is splashed with hot, stinging liquid, the smell and colour, and leftover acidic taste of which do absolutely nothing to help settle her stomach. Lena sits in shock for a full thirty seconds, her stomach still writhing in protest to the tight skirt she stupidly chose to wear that day, before she has the good sense to shakily press the button on the intercom system that runs directly to her assistant’s desk, and say, in a rather weaker voice than she would’ve hoped, “Jess, could you run to the store and get me a bottle of Pepto-Bismol?” 

The answer comes immediately, “Of course, Miss Luthor. Is there anything else I can do for you?” 

“Uh...” Lena thinks for a second. It’s hard when her brain is fuzzy and her whole body aches. The only thing she can think of is to call Kara, but they’ve only really known each other for a couple of months, and who’s to say Kara wouldn’t just run off, leaving Lena friendless and alone, if she were to see her like this? Lena doesn’t need her, anyway. She can get through this on her own. 

So all she comes up with is, “Cancel my two o’clock?” before she’s scrambling out of her seat and, stumbling, really, in the direction of the private bathroom at the back of the office. She’s dizzy and the room spins in front of her eyes as she drags herself across her office. One of her legs gives out half way and she almost falls, but she catches herself and keeps going, the bubbling feeling in her stomach somehow giving her the strength to practically launch herself towards the white walls and tiled floor of the bathroom. She falls to her knees, ignoring their screech of pain at being so unceremoniously scraped against the inflexible tiling, and gags hard into the toilet. More tears are squeezed from her eyes by the force of it, and as another mouthful of vomit splatters into the toilet water and across the seat, she starts sobbing. 

That’s another thing Lena Luthor never does: cry. Of course, her closest friends would beg to differ, but Lena is quite proud to say that she’s never cried in front of anyone other than Jack and Andrea, and, when they got blackout drunk together that one time, possibly Sam. But Jack is in Metropolis and Andrea’s in Argentina with her father and Sam is god knows where and Lena is alone, hunched over the toilet bowl, watching the contents of her stomach fall into the almost too-clean porcelain, so Lena sobs. 

She sobs because her whole body aches. She sobs because vomiting is disgusting. She sobs because she can’t remember the last time she was this sick, and she’s still wearing a shirt that’s covered in puke, and she really, really wants Kara. She wants Kara to come pick her up and drive her home and tell her everything will be okay. She just. She wants Kara. 

(She can’t have Kara. Kara will run. Kara will leave her, just like everyone always does, and Lena will be alone).

As much as she appreciates it when Jess knocks on the door of the bathroom and says that she’s got the Pepto-Bismol as well as a couple of bottles of Gatorade (yes, the orange flavoured one, Lena. You think I don’t know you well enough to know which Gatorade you like?) that she ‘needs’ to drink because Lena is apparently going to ‘get so dehydrated’, it’s still not Kara. Lena feels as pathetic as she must look as she crawls to the door to retrieve the surprisingly large grocery bag of supplies that Jess has left for her. 

She immediately opens the bottle of Pepto and practically chugs the max dose. She sips on a little Gatorade, too, but her stomach apparently doesn’t like that because she spends the next five minutes heaving bright pink back into the toilet. When she’s done and has a little more Pepto in her system, she turns back to the care package Jess has somehow managed to create in under five minutes, rolling her eyes at the sheer amount her assistant’s thought of. 

Lena’s eyes narrow at the sight of a banana and sleeve of crackers that she definitely saw on Jess’s desk this morning, and as she rifles through the rest of the bag, she realizes that Jess must’ve had at least some of what’s in the bag hidden away in some drawer in the near vicinity because there was no way she’d managed to get all the way down to the nearest drug store for Aspirin - nearly thirty blocks away - and back in five minutes. Lena takes four Aspirin, the sight of the drugs making her realize just how much her head hurts. Along with the Pepto, Gatorade, food, and Aspirin, there’s a blanket, which Lena immediately wraps around herself upon noticing how cold she is, a thermometer that declares Lena has a fever of 100.8, cough drops, an antihistamine medication, a box of Kleenex, and a note from Jess, reading, “The rest of your day has been cleared. PLEASE go home and get some rest. Feel better soon :)” 

Even if Lena could move more than a few feet from the toilet without worrying for all of her upholstery, there’s no way she’d go home; she has far too much work to do. So the next half hour is spent slumped against the toilet, trying to keep her nausea in check. 

She’s about to throw up for the umpteenth time when she feels the gentle pressure of a hand on her back. Lena whimpers into white porcelain. She doesn’t want anyone to see her like this. 

Kara’s voice rings over her shoulder, quiet and soothing, “Hey, I heard you weren’t feeling well.” Lena shakes her head, face practically in the toilet bowl as she tries to restrain the uncontrollable nausea pushing up into her throat. Kara’s lips are soft against the top of Lena’s scalp as her long fingers pull Lena’s hair back from her face, undoing the messy ponytail Lena had thrown it into in a feeble attempt to keep it vomit-free and redoing it more neatly. “How long have you been throwing up?” 

“Since noon-ish.” Lena’s voice is scratchy, having gone unused since she started throwing up, and she winces, immediately quieting it to nearly a whisper in an attempt to dull the pain, “Did Jess call you?” 

Kara pressed a cool hand to Lena’s forehead, checking for a fever, “Jess did not call me. Though she should have, because you’re burning up. No, I got to the sushi place and you weren’t there. I texted you, but you didn’t answer, so I assumed you were just focused on work and had lost track of time. I brought sushi, by the way, but I assume you don’t want any.”

The thought of raw fish makes Lena’s stomach leap again and she leans over the toilet bowl, whimpering as yesterday’s lunch of chickpea salad forces its way out of her. Kara’s left hand moves from holding Lena’s hair to gently rubbing her back, her breath cool on Lena’s neck as she whispers, “Hey, it’s okay, you’re okay.” 

“It hurts!” Lena gasps as she comes up for air. 

“I know. I’m sorry.” Kara rubs circles into Lena’s spine, an action that’s actually somewhat soothing. “You done for the moment?” 

Lena hesitates, her stomach is still flipping and churning, but there doesn’t seem to be an immediate threat of vomiting. “Um, yes. I-I think so.” 

“Okay. I’m going to grab that thermometer and a cool cloth for your forehead. You have a fever but I’m not a hundred percent sure how bad it is. Also,” she tugs at one of the sleeves of the still vomit-covered shirt Lena’s honestly forgotten she’s wearing, “Can I take this off of you? You still have that sweatshirt in the bottom drawer of your desk, right?” Lena nods, and then Kara’s comforting hands and soothing warmth are gone.

They return only a couple of moments later, but to Lena, it’s a couple moments too long. “Can I take your temperature?” Kara asks gently, waiting patiently for Lena’s small nod before asking her to open her mouth and sticking the thermometer, previously discarded on the floor a couple feet away (Kara washed it though, so she’s not too worried about germs), under her tongue. Apparently, her temperature has gone up since she last checked, because as soon as Kara catches sight of the number on the small screen of the thermometer, she grimaces and sighs, “oh, Lena.” 

She rises again and there’s the sound of running water before Kara’s back and pressing a wet washcloth to Lena’s forehead. The relief is immediate. Lena lets out another small whimper in response to the sensation of the frigid water running down her spine, the cold partially making her shiver, partially leeching the heat that’s been racing across her skin like fire for the past hour. 

“See, that’s better, isn’t it?” Kara drags the cloth lightly down across Lena’s cheeks and Lena gives a little sigh of relief. 

When Lena feels ready, Kara helps her to unbutton the blue and black blouse that’s wrapped and twisted itself around her torso in the time she’s been lying on the floor. As Kara slides the itchy fabric down Lena’s arms and off of her, Lena shivers, the cool cloth along with the air conditioner suddenly blowing cold over her bare skin making her just a little bit too icy. 

The fabric of the sweatshirt Kara pulls over her head is soft, in stark contrast to that of the previous garment, but Lena somewhat misses the warmth of the other shirt, and even as Kara rubs her arms in an attempt to stop her shivering, Lena remains firmly freezing; the cold is in her bones, turning her to ice from the inside out. 

Kara wraps the blanket from Jess’s care package around Lena’s shoulders again and the warmth it brings is almost enough to distract her from the nausea pushing back up her throat. Almost. 

“Kara!” She whimpers, before pushing herself frantically towards the toilet bowl again. 

“Hey, hey, I’ve got you.” Kara rubs Lena’s back as the latter of the two retches, “Okay, it’s okay. Get it all up, Lena.” 

Lena coughs up another mouthful of her stomach. “This is awful,” She moans when she’s finally able to breathe again. 

“I know.” Kara pulls Lena backwards, further into her arms. Lena leans into the touch, allowing Kara to hold her. They stay there for a few minutes before Kara gently tucks a stray piece of Lena’s hair behind her ear. “You ready to go home?” 

Lena shakes her head (which only makes her dizzy), “No, I have work…” she trails off. The attempt is futile; there’s no way in the world Kara would let her stay at work while she’s sick for even a lifetime of free potstickers. 

“That’s no excuse. You’re sick. We’re leaving.” Kara’s arms snake under Lena’s armpits and before the latter really knows what’s going on, Kara’s lifting her from the floor. Black spots dance in front of Lena’s eyes and she cries out, 

“Ahhah! No, Kara, I...” Lena’s eyes snap shut and her breathing becomes uneven and laboured. She’s vaguely aware of Kara lowering her back to the ground. Her whole face clenches in a grimace and hot, salty tears once again run down her cheeks. Her stomach twists angrily and waves of heat roll nauseatingly across her feverish skin. When her stomach has settled enough and she opens her eyes, Kara’s concerned face peers into her own. 

“Lena, are you okay?” She strokes Lena’s cheek with a thumb, sighs softly at the temperature of the skin there, “You’re not looking well at all. Oh, sweetheart.” 

Lena rubs a shaky hand across her eyes; the day’s events have only worsened the exhaustion that comes with being sick. “I can’t, Kara.” It sounds pathetic, even to her. 

“That’s okay.” Kara rubs a hand up and down Lena’s arm a couple of times. 

Lena’s stomach is flip-flopping again and Lena’s eyes widen as she launches herself towards the toilet “Gonna-“ she breaks off, whimpering as she gags. “K-Kara-” she retches. 

“Hey, I’m here.” Kara’s still behind her, still rubbing soothing circles on her back, still being comforting, unwavering Kara. Lena doesn’t deserve her, honestly. “I’ve got you, you’re okay.” 

Once Lena is confident she can do so without being sick again, she sits up. She sways slightly as her head tries to decide which way to fall, but then Kara pulls her into her chest and everything stops hurting for just a second. 

“I want to go home,” Lena mumbles. 

“Okay,” Kara whispers back, tucking that same stubborn strand of hair back behind Lena’s ear, “can you stand?” 

Lena tries, pushing herself into a crouched position on all fours, but she’s not sure where to go from there and then her head starts to spin and Kara guides Lena back to her lap, brushing away a few frustrated tears with nary a word about it. “Okay. It’s okay, Lena. Can I lift you?” 

Lena nods, so Kara shifts until she’s in front of Lena, then wraps her arms carefully under Lena’s, planting her feet and counting down from three in a whisper before lifting. Kara talks to her the whole time, gently whispering that “it’s okay, you’re okay” and, “I’ve got you, I’m here” until Lena is standing. Lena whimpers as dark spots appear in her vision. Her legs tremble as they try to support her, but they don’t have to because Kara’s got her. 

“See? That wasn’t so hard. Now let’s get you home.” 

The walk to the elevator, only a few meters from the door of her office, takes longer than Lena would like to admit. Jess’s look of sympathy is enough to make her cheeks burn as they pass her desk and she has to stop multiple times, Kara helping her to sit in one of the many chairs that line the hallway any time her legs start shaking just a little too much. In the elevator, Lena leans heavily on Kara, the arm her friend has wrapped around her being the only barrier between herself and the floor. 

When they finally get to the parking garage underneath the building and Lena remembers that she gave her driver the day off for his anniversary, she nearly bursts into tears, but then Kara asks where her car is and Lena points to where she parked this morning and Kara just helps her over to it and into the passenger side, and gets behind the wheel like she’s driven a Tesla every day of her life, which Lena knows for a fact isn’t true. Kara doesn’t even own a car, so Lena’s a little worried about how Kara’s going to handle driving this one, but once Kara figures out how to turn it on, it’s fairly smooth sailing. Once they get onto the highway, though, Lena’s stomach starts lurching again.

 She closes her eyes, praying to whatever gods might be listening that she can make it to her apartment. As it turns out, she can’t. She makes it to about five minutes from her apartment before her stomach twists angrily at a sharp turn. “Shit,” She mutters, “Kara, pull over.” 

Kara’s grip on the steering wheel, which she’d already had in a chokehold, tightens, and she flicks on the turn signal. They’re on the wrong side of the road to pull over. “Are you gonna throw up?” She sounds scared, almost. 

“Pullovernow!” Lena mumbles through gritted teeth. Kara swerves two lanes over and Lena’s stomach jumps again. “Kara!” She warns, her voice a breathy plead. 

“Almost there, Lena. We’re almost there, just hold on.” Kara speeds up, zipping in front of a truck just in time to pull into the shoulder before it thins out into a bridge. 

The car has barely stopped rolling before Lena has her seatbelt unbuckled and her door flung wide, leaning out over the grass as her body heaves violently. Kara’s hand finds her hair, smoothing back flyaways, and her other wraps around Lena’s front, preventing Lena from falling forwards out of the car. 

“Oh, Lena,” She soothes, “I’ve got you. I’ve got you. You’re okay.” 

“No, I’m not.” Lena wipes a hand across her mouth as Kara helps her to sit up, “I’ve been throwing up for hours. According to you, I have a fever of, like, a hundred and three or something. I’m too weak to sit up on my own. I’m sick.” 

“Yeah, you really are,” Kara agrees, “but I’m here, and I’m going to take care of you.” 

Lena manages a grateful smile before grimacing and leaning out of the car again.

When they finally get to Lena’s apartment building, Kara helps the sick woman into the elevator, wrapping an arm around her to keep her upright, and when they get to Lena’s penthouse apartment, Kara helps her to sit on the bench next to the elevator before asking, “Where’s your key?” 

Lena gestures at the handful of things Kara’d gathered from Lena’s office and car. “Purse,” She murmurs. 

Kara gets the door unlocked and supports Lena into her bedroom, helping the sick woman to collapse onto the king-sized mattress and whispering that she’ll be right back to tuck her in. 

Lena’s too delirious to wonder where Kara needs to go and is already half asleep when she feels Kara’s weight sinking into the mattress.

“Hey,” Kara tucks a stray hair behind Lena’s ear as the latter makes a feeble attempt to lift her head before letting it fall back to the pillow. Kara shushes her when she tries to explain her illness away, simply running her cool hand across Lena’s still burning forehead. “I brought you a couple of things.” 

She holds up a blue water bottle that Lena recognizes as her own, “Water,” She places the water onto the bedside table before holding up a second green bottle that Lena frowns at; it’s got frogs all over it and the initials ‘K.D’ written on the side. It’s Kara’s. Did she have that with her when she came to pick Lena up? She doesn’t remember. 

“Ginger Ale” Kara explains, putting the frog water bottle next to the water, then holding up one of the Gatorade bottles Jess had brought her earlier, “Gatorade,” Kara holds up a fourth item, a pill bottle this time, “Aspirin, though I’m assuming you’re already fully dosed on this, so maybe don’t take any more until like dinner time,” A second small bottle, this time a liquid medication, “NyQuil, take it sparingly. It’s supposed to be hard on your stomach so only take it if you think you really need it. Thermometer, Pepto - don’t take it until the Aspirin is out of your system, so I’d wait until at least six-thirty and then see which one you need more, your crackers, Kleenex, a cool cloth for your forehead,” she holds up each item as she says its name, “and a bucket in case you need to be sick. Can I tuck you in?” 

Lena nods and Kara’s fingers find her stomach, sending a jolt of electricity through Lena’s spine, before she stops, seeming to rethink, “Can I take off your skirt?” 

Lena nods again, being too ill to really care that Kara will see her in her underwear. Kara slides the offending article down Lena’s legs and discards it. 

“Can I take off your bra?” Lena hesitates and Kara continues, “I’ll be super careful not to pull your sweater up at all, I promise. I’m not a perv. It just has to be really uncomfortable.” Lena nods a bit before Kara’s soft hands - and they’re warm, god they’re so warm - are brushing lightly up her sides and around to her upper back, tugging her upwards into a sitting position. Kara pulls her close, holding her upright, gently undoing the clasp of Lena’s (stupid, uncomfortable, painful) bra and sliding it off with minimal difficulty. She lies Lena back onto the mattress and tugs the comforter and silk top sheet out from underneath Lena’s limp body before pulling them back up over her, tucking in the edges and placing a gentle kiss on Lena’s forehead. 

“I’ll be out in the kitchen if you need me, okay?” Kara turns back to the door. 

“No,” Lena whispers, and then again, louder, “No, stay, please.” 

Kara doesn’t say anything for a moment, and Lena cracks eyes that have fallen shut open again. 

Kara’s gentle smile is splayed across her face. “Of course I’ll stay,” she whispers, disappearing from Lena’s line of sight. Lena panics for a second, wondering where Kara’s gone, before there’s the sound of someone climbing into bed behind her, and Kara’s arm slings itself across Lena’s body. Lena relaxes into the touch and before long she realizes she must’ve fallen asleep because now she’s waking up. 

First, she’s aware of the cold, Kara’s body heat having left with the blonde while Lena was asleep. Then she’s aware of the saliva, a flood in her mouth, and the feeling of vomit rushing up her throat. Lena gives an involuntary cry, trying to sit up but failing. The promised bucket sits on her bedside table, just out of reach. She’s half-rolled-over and already heaving when the bucket is thrust under her chin, catching the worst of the vomit. Lena retches once more, another wave of sick splashing in on top of the last, only this time there’s a gentle hand stroking her hair and a soothing voice saying, “Hey, I’ve got you. That’s right, Lena. Get it all up. There you go.” 

Lena whimpers, half in pain, half in embarrassment, before throwing up a third time. She lets her head hang over the metal bowl for another minute, not trusting her stomach not to betray her again. When she’s satisfied with the size of the waves it’s sending her, she rolls so that her head is back on the pillow rather than hanging over the edge of the bed. Kara smooths back hair that’s stuck to Lena’s sweaty (though she’s not entirely certain how because she’s still shivering like mad) forehead. 

“Oh sweetheart,” she soothes, “you must feel awful.” 

Lena nods, her head spinning and her mouth feeling suddenly too dry. “Water,” she rasps in a whisper. Kara brings the water bottle from Lena’s bedside table to her lips, and Lena sucks greedily, only stopping when her stomach rebels and Kara has to hold the bucket for another round of vomiting. When she’s done, Lena tries a little more water and Kara reminds her to take “small sips, Lena”, though this time the liquid dribbles from her mouth before she can swallow, soaking into the sheets and her sweatshirt. Tears of frustration spring to her eyes and she turns away from Kara, blinking them back as much as she can. 

“Hey, hey, it’s okay.” Kara uses a thumb to wipe away the tears that have made it past Lena’s eyelashes. “If you want I could help you sit up. It’ll be easier to drink.” Lena shakes her head and turns even further so her whole body faces away from Kara. 

“Do you want me to leave you alone?” It’s cautious. Hurt, almost. 

Lena doesn’t want to nod, but her exhaustion and frustration with herself betray her and Kara sighs, stepping back from the bed. “Okay, well, I’ll wake you up in a few hours to eat. Your stomach must be pretty close to empty.” Lena’s too tired to realize that eating insinuates food until Kara’s shaking her shoulder, a tray of crackers and tea in her hand. She makes Lena nibble on three of the crackers and helps her to sit up to drink a few sips of the honey-lemon tea, but Lena almost immediately throws most of the food right back up, so Kara lets her sleep again. 

The next time she’s awake is because she needs to pee, calling for Kara to help her pad her way ever so slowly to the toilet and ever so slowly back to bed. Then, Kara’s trying to get her to take an Ibuprofen to reduce her fever, which has apparently climbed to over 102. Then, she ‘needs’ to eat again and this time the crackers stay down. But then the next time they come back up again. Then she supposes it’s the middle of the night because it’s pitch black and Kara’s usual clatter is missing. For a second Lena wonders if she’s gone, but she’s too tired to really care and passes out again before she can give any more thought to the matter. Lena throws up again around four in the morning, and apparently, Kara did stay because she’s there in a heartbeat, ushering Lena out to the couch so she can clean up the floor because Lena couldn’t make it into the bucket this time. Kara wakes her again to bring her back to bed and decides that now’s as good of a time as any to check her temperature. It’s gone up again. 

It feels like Lena wakes up a million times throughout the night, only to roll over and fall asleep again. 

Around nine she wakes up to a horrible knot in her stomach and no sign of Kara. Ignoring the horrible throbbing in her head and churning stomach, Lena pushes herself to her feet, shivering at the contact of the cold hardwood on her skin. A wave of vertigo washes over her and she has the sudden urge to be down , so she grips the bed frame like a lifeline and closes her eyes until the black spots clear from her vision. Her stomach gurgles as she stumbles towards the doorway, the room swimming in front of her eyes, and she wills herself not to throw up. She will not throw up she will not throw up she will not throw up-

She finds Kara in the kitchen, sitting on one of the barstools, leftover sushi open on the table in front of her. A small moan escapes Lena’s lips as her stomach flips and she looks around desperately for something to hold onto lest she pass out. Kara’s ears perk up at the small sound and she’s immediately out of her chair, rushing to Lena’s side. “Hey, you feeling a little better?” 

Lena groans and shakes her head, her legs about ready to collapse underneath her. “Kara, I-“ she breaks off, breathing heavily. Kara seems to notice what’s going on and wraps her arms around Lena to keep her more upright and provide something to lean on. 

“I’ve got you, I’ve got you,” Kara soothes, stroking Lena’s hair and pressing a kiss to Lena’s temple. Lena’s head spins. Her stomach writhes. She groans again and Kara’s officially the only thing holding her up, and she’s crying and nauseous and dizzy and everything hurts so much . Kara’s holding her and rubbing her back and reassuring her that it’s okay, that it’s all going to be okay, but Lena doesn’t think it will. 

Kara soothingly shushes her crying and says, “Let’s get you back to bed.” 

Lena nods, but her whole body rejects the feeling and she coughs violently, retching so hard it hurts. 

She manages a whimpered, “Sorry!” before she’s heaving again. 

She fully expects Kara to roll her eyes and push her away, tell her to get to bed herself and clean up the mess in the morning because Kara doesn’t want to do it a second time. She fully expects Kara to retaliate, to jump back and let go and leave and never come back, but Kara doesn’t even comment on the fact that she’s going to have to clean up a second mess. She doesn’t even stiffen, not for one second, just keeps rubbing Lena’s back and stroking her hair and shushing her and when she finally speaks beyond a ‘shh’, all she says is, “Come on. To bed.” 

She practically carries Lena back into her bedroom, laying her gently back on the bed and tucking her in again.  

“Can I take your temperature again?” Kara asks, waiting for Lena’s silent nod of assent before sticking the thermometer that still lay on her bedside table under Lena’s tongue. Lena has to fight the urge to gag at the sudden intrusion. When the thing finally beeps and Kara removes it, scowling at the tiny screen, Lena actually does gag, and Kara has the miraculously clean bucket under her chin without another thought. Lena doesn’t quite throw up, thankfully, so Kara says, “Your temperature’s gone up again. Do you think I could convince you to take another Advil?” 

Lena nods, so Kara helps her to sit up and hands her two pills and the ‘water’ water bottle. Lena takes a small sip, then another, swallowing the medication.

Kara puts the water bottle down and smooths back Lena’s hair. “I’m going to go clean up the kitchen. I’ll be right back, okay? Feel free to go back to sleep.”

Lena nods, so Kara leaves, but Lena can’t go back to sleep. She tosses and turns, one minute boiling hot, the sheets burning her skin until she kicks them off in desperation, the next chilled to the bone, tugging the blankets back up and huddling under them, unable to get enough heat. She’s clammy and shaky and the room seems to spin before her eyes. Her stomach flips and twists in a way that makes her wonder if she’s going to throw up again, but she thankfully manages to keep the water and meds down. 

When Kara comes back she sits gingerly on the edge of the bed and strokes Lena’s hair back off of her face. “Still feeling wretched?” She whispers. Lena nods. “Do you think you could manage a little bit of chicken soup?” Lena hesitates. She knows chicken soup would help her feel better in the long run, and also that it tastes fucking amazing when you have a fever of 102.4, but she’s not sure she’ll be able to keep it down and she really, really doesn’t want to throw up again. 

“You don’t have to eat it right away, I could just order some and then it’ll be here if you want it,” Kara adds, so Lena nods. (She can hear Kara calling to order and, half an hour later, chatting up the delivery guy. Something hot sparks in her chest, though that might be anxiety over keeping soup down). 

The first spoonful of broth (Noonan’s, obviously) stays down easily enough. The second and third aren’t a problem either, but the fourth and fifth are a bit of a struggle and after the sixth very nearly makes its reappearance on the bedspread, Lena refuses any more. Kara pulls up a movie on the TV Lena reluctantly had installed in her bedroom a few weeks after she moved in (she’s entirely grateful to her past self for it now, of course), and Lena falls asleep to ‘Our Last Summer’ because of course Kara chose Mamma Mia. 

She wakes to a far different sound; Kara’s in the kitchen, talking loudly (is she arguing?) into her phone. “I need to be here, okay? She’s been throwing up since yesterday! You’ll just have to tell J’onn that I can’t come in! She needs me.” Lena doesn’t have the strength to wonder who on earth ‘J’onn’ is. 

There’s a long pause where whoever is on the line with Kara obviously says something that Kara doesn’t agree with because Kara groans loudly and continues, “James won’t care that I’m gone! Just tell him I can’t come in because of-“ Kara lowers her voice and Lena can’t hear whatever she says next, but then Kara sighs and raises her voice again, “Seriously. She needs me, so I can’t.”

There’s another pause before Kara lets out a bitter chuckle, “Yeah, well, she’s had a pretty rough couple of days, poor thing. She’s got this fever of, like, a hundred and two point six, or something, and can’t keep anything down.” 

The other person says something that makes Kara sigh and from the small sliver of her friend Lena can see, she thinks she bites her lip. ”I don’t know, Al. She’s all clammy and shaky and pale, but not like her usual pale, it’s like, just, the wrong pale. Like yellow, almost. I’m doing my best to get her to take her meds and drink Gatorade and stuff, but she doesn’t keep any of it down. I’m really worried. I could use your help, honestly.”

Kara winces at whatever the other person - Al (Alex?) - says, “No, I know! I know. I just… I’m not really comfortable with human meds and stuff and I don’t want to accidentally overdose her on Tylenol or something.”

Kara makes a small noise of agreement and Lena strains to hear her say, “Look, I’ll swing by as soon as I can. Hopefully, she’ll be feeling better by tomorrow, but if not… would you consider taking a day? I’d really appreciate it.” 

There’s a pause and then Kara sighs again. “Okay, yeah. I love you. Bye.” 

Kara has obviously hung up the phone because a few seconds later she enters the bedroom, running her hands through her hair and looking frazzled. When she sees that Lena’s eyes are open, she cracks a smile, all stress suddenly gone from her features. 

“Hey, you’re awake. How’re you feeling?” Lena shrugs and Kara presses a cool hand to her forehead. “I’m going to take your temperature again. I think it’s gone down.” 

It apparently has gone down because when the thermometer beeps, Kara lets out a sigh of relief at the number staring up at her from the screen and says, “Hopefully you’re on the mend.” 

Lena gives a small smile. “I’m feeling a little better, actually. Who were you on the phone with?” 

Kara rolls her eyes, “Oh, just Alex. She wanted to know if I was going in to work today. Told me I should just leave you here. Alone. While you’re sick.” She gives a snort of laughter. 

Lena cautiously bites her lip. “You said you’d do it, right?” She says it half because she doesn’t want Kara to have to put her life on hold for something as simple as a little flu and half because her fever-addled brain still fully expects Kara to up and leave the first chance she gets. (So maybe she’s not 100% secure in their friendship yet.)

Kara raises an eyebrow. “You’re kidding, right?” Lena shakes her head almost sheepishly. Kara sighs. “Lena, I told her there was no way in hell she was dragging me away from you while you were feeling so awful. I told her that you are my most important thing right now and that I don’t care how bad the situation at the- at CatCo is, I’m not leaving you alone here. And I’ll tell you the same thing. Lena, I love you. You think that just because I see you throw up I’m going to run away? No way! I’m not going anywhere. I promise.” 

Lena’s heart does an odd thing where it leaps into her throat - though she supposes that could be because she’s got so many drugs running through her system. “Oh,” She manages. 

Kara frowns slightly. “Lena, you didn’t seriously think I would leave you like this. I’m not Lex. I know we’ve only been friends for a few months and you probably didn’t want me to be the one taking care of you, but Lena, you are my best friend. I’m not just going to leave you! You’re sick and you should have someone here to make sure you’re okay. I won’t leave.” 

Lena goes to say something. She opens her mouth and tries to make a noise, but nothing comes out. Hot tears roll down her cheeks and rest on her chin for a moment before falling to the sheets. 

“Hey, no,” Kara wipes a few of the droplets from her face, “no crying. I’ve got you. I’m here.” Lena gives a hiccupy sob, nodding and burying her face in Kara’s shirt. Kara just holds her, rubbing her back and stroking her hair for a while. 

“I need to use the bathroom,” Lena eventually murmurs, still buried in Kara’s side, and she doesn’t expect Kara to hear but apparently she does because she’s helping Lena to her feet before Lena can blink. It takes forever, Lena being unsteady on her feet and honestly about to be sick again, so even with Kara’s help her feet drag and each step feels like a Herculean effort. 

“Can I please have some privacy?” Lena asks meekly, her face flushing at the idea of Kara seeing her completely bare (she has a vague memory of an earlier bathroom trip and Kara helping pull her underwear down, but it’s fuzzy and she can’t tell if it’s real or a fever dream). 

“Of course. Call if you need me.” Kara smiles and closes the door behind her as she leaves. 

Lena gets to work on pulling down her pajama pants (when had she put those on? Had Kara?) and underwear, but quickly realizes asking Kara to go was not a good idea as her head spins and black spots dance in her vision. She grabs the counter to steady herself and lets out a pitiful whimper, which (she’s not sure if it’s fortunate or not) doesn’t bring Kara running. 

She finishes her business as swiftly as possible, groaning at the cramping in her gut and the sounds her body is making, and quickly wipes, flushing the toilet and standing up a moment later. Bad idea. 

“Kara-“ she cuts herself off as she leans over, the room swimming in front of her eyes and stomach clenching violently. “Kara!” She tries again, a little louder. 

Kara’s voice sounds from the other side of the door. “Lena? Are you okay? Do you need help?” She doesn’t enter, despite the fact that Lena is shaking violently and literally about half of a second away from hitting the floor. 

“If you need my help just let me know and I’ll come in.” Kara’s words start to fade out as Lena’s brain struggles to keep her conscious. Her vision starts darkening, blurring even more than it had been and she can feel her muscles giving out, can feel herself sliding towards the floor. She prepares herself for the sting of her body hitting the hard tile, but it never comes. Instead, warm, solid arms wrap around her and Kara’s voice says, “Whoops!” and then Lena passes out. 

She wakes up back in bed, pants now back up around her hips. Kara sits beside her, gently running her fingers through Lena’s hair as she hums a quiet tune. Lena shivers involuntarily, her internal thermometer apparently deciding she’s somewhere near the North Pole in winter, and Kara looks down at her. “Hey, you’re awake! You passed out on me for a bit there.”

Lena’s teeth chatter as she pulls the blankets more tightly around her. “C-cold, K-Kara-” She’s shivering all over and Kara frowns, pressing a hand to her clammy forehead. 

“Oh, Lena,” Kara sighs, “You’re just so sick, aren’t you?” 

Lena nods, rolling over to try and get back to sleep. Kara runs her fingers through Lena’s hair once again, resuming her humming once more. It only takes a couple of seconds before Lena sits up abruptly, her stomach once again sloshing about violently. 

“Kara, I’m gonna-” she breaks off, breathing heavily through her nose before continuing, “-gonnathrowup-”

Kara immediately has the bucket under Lena’s chin and is helping her sit up when the first heave comes. Nothing comes up, but the force squeezes even more hot, salty tears from her eyes. Kara runs her fingers through Lena’s hair as the brunette retches again, and this time it’s productive. 

“Oh, sweetheart,” Kara soothes as Lena is sick for a second time. At this point all that’s really coming up is bile and its bitter taste is doing nothing to help Lena feel any less nauseous. 

“I hate throwing up,” Lena murmurs, one hand clenched tightly over her rocky stomach, the other slung limply across one of Kara’s arms that’s still holding the bucket. 

“I know,” Kara comforts, “we should get some food in you. Your stomach’s completely empty.” 

Lena whimpers slightly at the mention of eating. “Please, no food. I-“ She struggles for words, tears still streaming steadily down her face. She has to get it across to Kara that she cannot eat anything more right now. “I really, really don’t want to throw up again. P-please, Kara. I-“ she takes a deep breath, “I can’t.” 

“Okay,” Kara tenderly kisses the top of her head, “okay. I know. You must be feeling so awful. You’ve pretty much just been throwing up and sleeping for the past day or so.” (It’s only been that long?)

Lena nods. Kara sighs. “Can I at least get you to drink some Gatorade? Your electrolytes are probably all out of whack.”

Lena drinks a little bit. Her stomach doesn’t rebel right away, which settles her nerves a little. She shivers again, though not nearly as violently as before; the shaking is more muscle weakness than cold at this point. 

Lena falls asleep ten minutes later. 

She wakes up coughing. Her stomach aches at the painfully repetitive clenching of her abs, and by the time the coughing is under control, she’s about two seconds away from being sick again. Kara’s sleeping form is still next to her despite the sunlight pouring through the curtains (giving Lena a wicked headache), and she must be pretty exhausted because she doesn’t wake up, even as Lena gags and dry heaves miserably over the edge of the bed. Nothing comes up, so Kara was obviously right about her stomach being empty, but Lena’s still too nauseous to eat and too dizzy to try to get herself into the kitchen for food anyways. 

Lena rolls back to the pillows shaking and uncomfortable. Her temperature seems to have steadied some, but she still feels wrong in her skin. She can feel (and taste - ugh) dried bile in the corners of her mouth and is honestly debating trying to haul herself to the bathroom to get a cloth because it stings and the more she thinks about it the more uncomfortable it gets. Muscles she wasn’t even aware she had ache and she lets out a small whimper as the pounding in her head makes her vision blur slightly. 

She wants desperately to go back to sleep. At least then the pain isn’t so bad. She squeezes her eyes shut and huddles closer to Kara (is this crossing a boundary? Lena doesn’t know. Not that she cares much right now). Her stomach rolls again and her eyes fly open once more. 

After another round of dry heaves, she leans back, tears now rolling gently down her cheeks as she sits up, taking a moment to let the blackness creeping in the edges of her vision fade before reaching for the Pepto. She pours herself a healthy dose and quickly takes it like a shot, shuddering at the taste before lying back down. Kara still hasn’t stirred and Lena sort of desperately wishes she’d just wake up because Lena needs her, needs someone (she needs Kara specifically but it’s not like she’s going to admit it). 

Lena curls herself into a ball, tucking her arms up into the sleeves of her sweatshirt and her legs into her chest, pulling the fabric down over them. She knows it’s going to stretch the shirt but she doesn’t care. She only ever wears it in emergencies anyway. Tears now streaming steadily down her face (she can feel them drip-drip-dripping onto the pillow), Lena shudders, letting out a soft whine. She wants so much to be better, to be done with this misery. 

It doesn’t take long before she’s asleep again but then it’s even less time before she’s waking up to a churning stomach. Dried tear streaks are replaced with fresh ones as she gags pathetically once more, this time without even the energy to roll her head over the side of the mattress. Half-digested Pepto Bismol floods her mouth but she swallows it down, the taste twice as bad the second time. 

“Kara-“ she chokes out, because she’s certain that if the Pepto comes back once more she won’t be able to hold it in. Kara doesn’t stir, and Lena falls back asleep, completely exhausted and praying for more than a couple of minutes this time. 

The fates are not on her side. Thankfully, though, she isn’t as nauseous as before. Instead, she lies awake thinking of Kara. Kara Danvers, the literal embodiment of a golden retriever puppy, who stole Lena’s heart the second she stepped into her office with her cousin, Kara fucking Danvers. Lena still doesn’t quite know why Kara chose to be friends with her. Lena’s family is bad enough to send anyone running, and because of it Lena has never really had a stable relationship, friendly or otherwise, other than Andrea in boarding school and Jack back at MIT. Even Sam only lasted long enough for Lena to help her during the Luthorcorp acquisition of Sam’s former company. She’s honestly just waiting for the shoe to drop, with Kara, because it’s bound to, soon enough. Lena’s given her an out - more than one - but Kara stayed and Lena has no idea why she stayed. She knows it won’t last.

Lena’s thoughts are interrupted by a sudden and incessant flood of nausea in her throat. Lena has no idea where she gets the strength to roll over, not to mention sit halfway up and grab the bucket from her bedside table. Globs of hot saliva are all that drip from her lips after the first few feeble gags, but soon enough a couple of mouthfuls of still-pink-tinged stomach contents splatter into the bottom of the bowl. 

Lena leans back, groaning. So she still can’t keep anything down, not even the stupid nausea meds. She eyes the nightstand. What else could be on there that could help her? NyQuil will knock her out, that much she knows, and she’s pretty confident it’s been long enough since she last had those fever meds that she won’t accidentally overdose on it, so she pours herself a little cupful of the dark red medicine. It almost comes back up before it can even really go down, but Lena manages to swallow it and it does its job quickly enough. Lena sleeps deeply once again. 

Kara and the bucket are both gone when she wakes up. She can hear water running and Kara humming from the kitchen and supposes Kara must be rinsing the bucket out - which makes her feel bad, thinking about how nasty the contents must’ve been. 

Kara returns to the bedroom a few minutes later, placing the bucket on the nightstand and stooping to press a kiss to Lena’s forehead. She frowns. 

“I think your temperature’s going up. I’m going to check that, okay?” Lena nods and allows for the intrusion of the thermometer under her tongue. Kara bites her lip as she reads the number on the screen and sighs as she looks up at Lena. “Sweetheart.” She tucks a lock of Lena’s hair behind her head again and presses the backs of her cool hands to Lena’s cheeks. 

“Kara,” Lena croaks. Her eyelids feel heavy despite the fact she’s only just woken up, her tongue as rough as sandpaper. 

“I’m here, love. I’m going to call Alex quickly, okay? She might need to come over.” Lena nods. She knows from Kara’s expression she must have a really high temperature. Some vague part of her brain seems to remember that Alex is (was?) a doctor, and that’s probably why Kara is calling. She wants to know if Lena’s dying. 

She’s alone for the longest ten minutes of her life. She’s restless but exhausted, burning up but freezing, her head is as light as a feather but the rest of her is as heavy as a brick. Her chest feels dense and she coughs a couple of times, but it does nothing to relieve the pressure. Her entire body is rejecting the idea of being awake but she knows if she tries she won’t be able to sleep. She swallows and her throat feels raw. And then it’s over before she knows it and Kara’s back and she’s still frowning but she looks less terrified. 

“Alex says to take you into the ER if your temp. gets above 103.5. You’re at 102.9, so I’m gonna monitor you for a while, just to make sure your fever isn’t spiking or you don’t suddenly seize. So I have these!“ Kara holds up a package of kids' fever patches (Lena doesn’t have the energy to wonder where on earth she got that from) and starts opening it. Lena coughs feebly. 

“Wait, Kara,” she croaks, throat still raw from vomiting. Kara pauses in her movement of opening the package of fever patches. “You don’t have to,” Lena continues, and Kara’s slight frown deepens. “I’m okay on my own, I promise. You don’t have to do this sort of thing for me. I'm an adult, you know.”

“What sort of thing?” Kara asks and Lena’s throat is so sore and she doesn’t want to continue but if Kara doesn’t get it she has to. 

“The ‘taking care of me’ sort of thing. You don’t have to put a fucking fever patch on me. You don’t have to help me to the bathroom. You don’t have to force meds and food down my throat and keep me company and clean up my vomit and stay . You don’t- you don’t have to stay. I’m going to be fine on my own. I’ve been fine on my own for years, since I was practically a baby. I’ll be fine, Kara. I’ve been sick on my own before, I’m sure I’ll be sick on my own again, so I’ll be- I’ll be fine. You’re actually the first person to ever take care of me like this. But. You don’t have to stay.” Lena has tears in her eyes by the end because why would anyone do any of that for her? 

“Oh sweetheart.” Kara sits on the mattress next to her, wipes Lena’s face with a cloth seemingly produced out of nowhere, spends extra time tracing the tear tracks down her cheeks. “Sweet girl. Sweet, sweet Lena.” 

Lena chokes on her tears and it’s too much, too sweet. 

“Lena.” Kara says her name with such softness, such complete tenderness that it breaks Lena all over again. 

“This is not a chore for me.” 

“But-“

“No, Lena. This is not work, or a chore, or a hassle. This is NOT, in any way, a burden for me. I hate that you’re sick, and I wish I could make you feel better, of course I do, but Lena, my sweet Lena, you are not a burden. I am so sorry, I am so sorry you’ve had to be on your own for so long. I am so sorry that your parents didn’t take care of you when you were sick. But Lena, you do not deserve any less than this. You deserve to be looked after when you’re sick. You deserve people who will take care of you.” 

Lena wipes a bit of snot from her nose off with her sleeve. She’s exhausted and a little delirious and most of what Kara just said went right over her head but she’s sure it was soft, she’s sure it was perfect, because that’s who Kara is. She’s perfect. 

“Lena, sweetheart…” Kara looks concerned again. Lena’s vision is swimming. 

“What’s your temperature, can I…” she sticks the fever patch to Lena’s forehead, biting her lip again. “Hasn’t gone up…” she takes Lena’s head in her hands and turns her face from side to side. 

Lena coughs and doubles over, Kara’s grip on her cheeks falling away as Lena’s mouth wrenches open, stringy bits of saliva dangling from her lips. 

“Lena…” Her head is pounding. 

“Lena?” She's just so tired. 

“Lena!” she might be throwing up but she’s not sure because her head is spinning.

“Kara-“ she gasps, coughing again and shuddering as a chill runs through her. 

“Oh honey.” Kara’s gentle hands run along her spine. 

“Kara-“ she whimpers, muscles aching in protest as she tries to get closer to Kara - she needs to get closer -

“Sweetheart, can you lie down for me?” Kara’s hands guide her head to her pillow, her legs out and her body to the mattress. 

Lena’s so tired. She’s so tired , and all she wants is to go to sleep, but her head hurts so much and her body aches so much and she’s shaking and crying and Kara’s trying to get her to take another Tylenol - she can’t have Tylenol, she just had NyQuil! Last time she was awake! She can’t take NyQuil and Tylenol at the same time because they both have acetaminophen-

“Lena, honey, what are you saying? Did you take something while I was asleep?” Kara’s voice is desperate and Lena blinks wearily, trying to clear her head.

Eventually, she nods (or at least she thinks she nods) and pushes Kara’s hand away, pointing at the NyQuil on the table. 

“Oh, okay. So we won’t take Tylenol. Can you take an Aspirin for me?” 

Lena thinks for a moment before nodding. While Aspirin shouldn’t be mixed with Pepto Bismol, it has to have been more than enough time for the earlier Pepto to run through her system and she threw most of it back up anyway. Kara helps her swallow the pill and Lena whimpers when she can feel it already starting to come back up. She squeezes her eyes shut and takes huge deep breaths and somehow manages to keep the meds down (for now). 

The next thing Lena’s aware of is a new voice, slightly familiar but also slightly un familiar. Kara’s there, her wavy blonde hair about all that Lena’s blurry vision can make out, and her voice is low as she speaks over the newcomer. “I’m really worried, Alex. She’s delirious and still throwing up and her fever won’t come down, no matter what I try.” 

“I know, Kara,” the voice answers, “I’m here, okay? I’m going to make sure Lena’s okay.”

Right. Alex. Because Kara thinks she’s dying and Alex is or was a doctor, Lena still can’t remember which, and Alex can save her life, not that Lena thinks it needs saving. 

Lena doesn’t know when she got so close, but Alex is suddenly leaning over her and it’s close . Lena whimpers a bit and Alex frowns. Her forearm finds Lena’s forehead. “Oh, jeez. You weren’t lying. She’s burning.” Kara nods, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth and wrinkling her brow.

“Have you tried a lukewarm bath?” Alex suggests. 

“No,” Kara replies, “wouldn’t an ice bath be better?” 

“No, it’ll make her shiver enough to raise her body temperature even more. Tepid is the way to go.” Alex stands, glancing back at Lena before continuing, “if the bath brings her temperature down and seems to be helping with the delirium, then she should be fine. If not, let me know and I’ll run to the DEO for an IV kit so we can get her hydrated. That’s probably all it is, Kara. I’m not worried. She has the flu so hydration is hard. If we can get her to keep some water down I’m sure she’ll be on the mend soon.”

Kara nods and Lena rolls over and she thinks she might throw up again, her stomach certainly seems to be heading in that direction, but then Kara’s lifting her into a sitting position and then helping her stand and walking with her into the bathroom. The tub is already full and as Kara gently starts to undress her, Lena feels a pang of embarrassment spark through her. 

“I can do it, Kara.” She tries to say it normally but it comes out as a scratchy whisper and her head spins at the lack of air in her lungs. It takes her a moment to regain her breath. 

“No, Lena. You’ll pass out or something if I leave you here.” 

“Kara, please.” She needs privacy. Lena’s not a particularly intimate person at the best of times, and being so sick is just making her crave seclusion even more. (Especially from Kara. Her body is a canvas of stretch marks and scars and hundreds of thousands of imperfections that Kara doesn’t need to be aware of, never mind the fact she’s definitely already seen most of them).

“Okay. Okay, I’ll give you privacy. But I’m not leaving the bathroom. I’ll turn my back, or, or close my eyes or something, but Lena, you’re not strong enough to do this on your own. So I’m not leaving.” 

Lena accepts this answer. She waits until Kara’s back is turned to resume her undressing, and despite the fact that Kara’s managed to almost fully de-clothe her (she flushes at the realization that her chest has been exposed), she can barely finish the job without passing out. Her head is spinning so rapidly that she actually slides to the floor for a moment, breathing heavily and groaning slightly as the spots clear, and she practically has to roll herself into the tub. She starts shivering a split second after her body has been submerged and doesn’t stop the entire time she’s in the bath. Even when Kara turns around to check her temperature and declares her fever ‘low enough… I think…’ and lets her get herself wrapped up in a towel, Lena’s shivering persists. 

Kara practically carries her back into her bedroom and sets her on the bed, once again turning around as Lena pulls on a fresh hoodie (one of Jack’s that she forgot to give back) and a pair of underwear, forgoing trying to bend down far enough to tug on pajama pants. 

“‘M decent,” she rasps when she’s done and has half-tucked herself into bed again. Kara turns back around with a sympathetic smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. 

“How are you feeling now?” she asks, “did the bath help at all?” 

Lena shakes her head. “Still nauseous as hell. Still cold. Still exhausted.” She shivers, the wet hair sticking to her neck making her skin feel like ice. 

“Do you think you could eat a bit?” Kara asks. For once, Lena nods, albeit hesitantly. 

“Crackers?“ she asks. 

“Of course, baby.” Kara plants a kiss on her forehead, snagging the food from Lena’s bedside table. “Do you think you could try a bit of banana, too? They’re supposed to be easy on your stomach.” Lena nods, accepting the food, and it stays down! Lena gives a sigh of relief as she finishes off the banana and half of a sleeve of crackers without her stomach rebelling. Kara gets her to drink some of what’s left of the gatorade and that stays down, too, and Lena manages almost a quarter of the bottle before putting it down. 

She lies back, eyelids drooping and a half-smile on her face. “‘M tired, Kara.” She whispers. 

Kara sighs, a smile not unlike Lena’s own tugging at her lips. “Do you just want to try to sleep some more? Alex is still in the kitchen but I can entertain her for a while. She’ll probably want to assess you again after you’ve woken up, but no worries if you just want a nap.”

Lena nods, a stray tear (where on earth did that come from?) sliding down her cheek. 

“Oh, Lena, don’t cry. It’s okay, don’t cry.” She slides onto the bed and wraps Lena in her arms and god Lena needs this. She cries quietly into Kara’s shoulder until she has no more tears to cry and then she just hiccups softly until Kara’s gentle fingers tangled in her hair and soft voice singing a hauntingly beautiful melody lull her to sleep. 

It’s dark out when she wakes, bathed in sweat and shaking violently. Kara’s body is asleep beside her on the bed, providing a heat that only serves to make Lena uncomfortable. She can hear someone rummaging around in the kitchen and assumes it’s Alex. There’s a horrid nausea pushing at her sternum and she’s pretty certain she’s going to throw up again soon, but Kara must’ve forgotten to bring the bucket back after her bath or something because there’s no sign of it. She rolls herself out of bed and (god, why did Kara have to take the side of the bed closest to the bathroom?) slowly makes her way across the room. She collapses in front of the toilet, breathing heavily at the effort it took to get there and her arms shake as she holds herself above the bowl. She groans as her stomach gives a lurch and she lets out a nauseous burp, the back of her right hand flying up to cover her mouth as her left shakes more with the effort of keeping her there. 

“Oh, hey, um…” there’s a voice above her and for a second she’s sure it’s a repeat of yesterday? The day before that? She’s not sure exactly how long it’s been since Kara first found her on the bathroom floor of her office; her fever has made time almost impossible to follow, but then she realizes it’s not Kara but Alex who’s found her this time. 

“You okay? I mean, obviously you’re not okay, but like, do you want me to get Kara?” Alex asks, but Lena doesn’t have enough time for that and she doesn’t want to get sick on her own again, so she shakes her head and Alex comes to crouch behind her. 

“Do you want me to go?” She asks and Lena frantically shakes her head again, gagging miserably into the toilet bowl. 

“Oh, Lena,” Alex says gently, running her fingers up and down Lena’s back. Lena heaves and a few strings of bile slide from her lips. 

“Oh, jeez, okay, um-“ Lena’s hair, previously let loose for her bath, is once again tied back, this time by Alex’s slender fingers. 

Lena burps again, whining at the acidic taste left in her mouth, but even the slight release of pressure the belch brings doesn’t help her stomach for more than a millisecond. The next time she feels the urge, she lets herself gag, this time bringing up a small mouthful of vomit. She leans further over the toilet, letting the vile liquid dribble from her lips before she heaves again and this time it brings up more. 

Alex runs her thin hands up and down Lena’s spine, mimicking what Kara did earlier, and Lena wonders for a second if their parents did that with them when they were sick as children. (Lena herself got a pinched nose, a spoonful of caster oil poured down her throat and a sharp ‘Luthors do not get sick; now stop being dramatic and get off of the floor’, but she doesn’t have time to dwell on this because she’s throwing up again.)

Alex is gone and back before Lena can process it and hands her the water bottle from her bedside table. Lena gives a grateful smile and sucks down half of it before Alex can stop her. (Alex winces as Lena throws it all back up - she really needs to start remembering to take small sips). 

When she’s finally done, Lena rests her cheek on the cool porcelain of the toilet, not caring that it’s probably got vomit on it, and lets out a heavy sigh. 

“O-okay, um-“ Lena starts, voice wobbling as she tries valiantly to hold back her tears, “Y-you can go get Kara, n-now, if you w-want” She sniffs feebly. 

“D’you, D’you want me to go get Kara?” Alex asks, and Lena hesitates. “‘Cause I can go get Kara if you want,” Alex continues, “but like, if you just want some privacy, I can do that too, or, or-“ 

“No, it’s,” Lena whispers, effectively cutting off Alex’s rambling (she and Kara really are sisters, huh). “It’s, just stay? I need-“ Lena fights off a sob, “I need, just, um-“ she takes a huge breath, lets it out, “s-someone-“ she breaks off as tears roll down her cheeks. 

“O-okay,” Alex nods, “okay, I can stay. I’m here, Lena.” There’s a hand wrapping across her shoulders and lifting her gently from the toilet and then Lena’s in Alex’s arms and she’s crying silently into Alex’s shoulder. 

“Oh, Lena.” Alex’s voice is soft, so soft as she rocks Lena, “I know, I know. Sometimes you just need a big sister, huh?”  And Lena nods because oh, that’s it, that’s the feeling. That’s why she couldn’t let Alex leave. 

Lena wakes up back in bed. She can’t remember if her time on the bathroom floor with Alex was real or a dream; all she knows is that it seems to be early morning and that Kara’s gone again. The other half of the sleeve of crackers is still on her bedside table and Lena nibbles on a few, her stomach flip-flopping only a bit in response. She’s content to sit and sip on some Gatorade for a while, but after a couple of seconds, she frowns. 

“Kara, where’s my phone?” She calls into the kitchen. Kara’s face appears in the doorway after a second. 

“You’re awake! Alex told me you were feeling pretty wretched the last time you were up. How are you feeling now?” She makes her way over to Lena’s bed and sits next to her. 

“Not great, but better than I have been, I think.” Lena coughs a bit as the words irritate her throat, “but, um, do you know where my phone is? I’m sure I have a billion emails that I should probably catch up on while I’m feeling up to it.”

“Yeah, it’s in the kitchen, but…” Kara trails off, biting her lip and scrunching her eyebrows. “Lena, you’re still sick. Your temperature’s still at-” she leans over and squints at Lena’s forehead and Lena suddenly remembers that she’s got a fucking fever patch on her face- “one-oh-three point seven, and you’re shivering again-” oh, she’s right- “so if you want to take another day, you can take another day. You don’t have to be a CEO right now. You can just be Lena. That’s okay.” Lena goes to interrupt, to say that while she’d love to ‘take another day’ she actually can’t, but before she can get a word out Kara’s finger presses into her lips, effectively shutting her up, and she continues, “I’ve talked to Jess, too, and she says there’s nothing going on that she can’t handle. Your company can survive without you for two days, Lena.” 

Lena acquiesces because Kara’s giving her that look that makes her cheeks flush and her heart pound (which Lena tries hard not to read into) and she’s suddenly not feeling much better at all. 

“Kara, um,” She pauses, half-digested crackers and Gatorade battling violently with her stomach acid at the bottom of her esophagus. 

“Are you feeling sick again?” Kara asks, already helping Lena stand. 

“Mhmm.” Lena nods quickly, bemoaning the throbbing that immediately sparks somewhere around her temples at the action. 

Kara loops her arm under Lena’s, carefully guiding her across the floor of her bedroom. Lena pants as she walks, her muscles shaking as she realizes just how sick she truly is. They’re about half way when Lena’s stomach gives a sharp leap and she whines, her breath coming more and more rapid. 

“Do you think you’re going to make it?” Kara asks gently. Lena gives a small, panicked shrug. 

“Dunno-” she gasps. 

“Okay, okay. It’s okay if you can’t, I won’t be mad, Lena. Do you need to sit down or can we keep going?” Kara’s voice oozes concern. 

“Keep- keep going,” Lena whines. 

Kara encourages her the whole way, gentle “I’ve got you”s and “You’re doing so good, Lena”s interspersed with Lena’s whines and gasps. Kara flicks on the light in the bathroom and gingerly deposits Lena in front of the toilet, sitting on the edge of the bathtub. The bitter taste of vomit coats Lena’s tongue as she throws up twice. 

“Oh, sweetheart,” Kara coos as Lena sits back, wiping her mouth with a shaky hand. 

“‘M sorry, Kara.” Lena whispers, “It’s disgusting, I know, and I just- I want to be better, but I just feel so sick-” She breaks off as she pushes herself again in the direction of the toilet. 

“I know, I know. You don’t have to apologise, Lena.” Kara’s voice is so soft and despite the fact that Lena is throwing up out of her mouth and nose and her head aches like hell, it somehow makes everything less shitty. 

Lena sits back up and her eyes find Kara’s. “Are you done?” Kara tucks a piece of Lena’s hair behind her ear. Lena nods after a second of contemplation and Kara smiles softly. “Okay, sweetheart. Let’s get you back into bed.” 

Kara helps her to sit up. Everything inside of Lena sparks with pain and if she hadn’t just emptied what little contents her stomach could hold she would have done so all over Kara’s lap. As it is, she gags wearily and tears spring to her eyes. Kara takes her in her arms and they sit there together, Lena curled in Kara’s lap, as an unintelligible amount of time passes. 

The walk back to bed takes less time than the previous one to the bathroom, and Lena doesn’t feel like throwing up for any of it (she feels empty and drained instead) so she counts it as a win. Kara tucks her back in and runs to the kitchen to grab a fresh bucket, returning to Lena’s side with Alex in tow. 

“Hey, Lena,” Alex says softly from the doorway, “I’m gonna head out now, okay? Your temperature is stable and you don’t seem to be too dehydrated, so there’s no need for an IV. Kara’s going to stay here, though. If you need anything, just call, okay?” Lena nods. “See ya later, kid.” Alex gives a little wave before slipping from the room. 

Kara gives Lena a soft smile, brushing a piece of hair back from her face, before holding up the bottle of gatorade. “So I know Alex said you aren’t dehydrated, but you still need to keep your electrolytes balanced so you gotta drink something. It doesn’t have to be this. There’s water, or ginger ale, I could make you a smoothie…” She trails off, looking at Lena expectantly. 

Lena wonders for a second how on earth Kara would make a smoothie; she never has any fruit in her apartment, fresh or frozen, and also doesn’t own a blender, but she doesn’t want a smoothie anyways so it doesn’t really matter. “Um, ginger ale, please?” She asks quietly, her voice cracking. 

“Of course.” Kara hands her the green water bottle and Lena sucks at it a bit, getting a few small mouthfuls of the ginger ale. It helps to settle her stomach a little, which feels good, but it also burns her raw throat and she coughs after just a couple of sips. 

“Can I switch to water?” She asks. 

“Can you manage Gatorade?” Kara responds, “water won’t really help as much.” Lena nods in agreement and manages most of the rest of the Gatorade before she’s basically asleep against the pillows. Kara tugs the bottle from her grasp. 

“You want to just try to sleep? You look exhausted.” Kara suggests. Lena nods and before she can really register Kara’s hands tugging the pillow down and helping her to lie flat, she’s out cold. 

When she wakes up, she feels good, and it’s so surprising that she actually laughs. Kara pokes her head in, frowning. 

“What’s up?” She asks, coming in further upon seeing Lena’s eyes open. Her own eyes widen as she takes in Lena’s form, sitting up in bed, and her tired smile. “You look like you’re feeling better.”

“Yeah, a little.” Lena lets the smile slip from her face; it’s taking too much energy. 

“Your temperature is down, too,” Kara notes, glancing at the fever patch on Lena’s forehead, “at about 102.3. That’s really good! Hopefully you’re on the mend.”

“Yeah, well, I’m still tired,” Lena admits. 

“Okay, well if you want to sleep a little more, that’s totally okay with me. I’ll be here.” Kara smiles softly and Lena nods, letting her eyes fall shut once more. 

The next time she wakes, her temperature has gone down significantly, her fever having broken entirely, and Kara helps her move out to the couch, tucking blankets and pillows all around her so she doesn’t have to hold herself up so much. She offers Lena the rest of the soup from Noonan’s and Lena eats it all, her stomach only grumbling slightly in response. 

They put on a movie and Lena spends the rest of the day sleeping or eating or making small talk with Kara until finally, around 10:30 the next morning, Kara says that she should probably head out. Lena’s been feeling better for 18 hours, so Kara’s not worried about leaving her on her own anymore, and Snapper has been asking where she is, so she should probably head into the office. Lena agrees that she should go, though an admittedly large part of her wishes she’d stay for just a little longer. 

“Well, I’m glad you’re feeling better,” Kara says, awkwardly lingering in the entryway.

“Me too,” Lena sighs, “Thank you again, Kara. You really didn’t need to do any of that for me. Though I must admit that I’m very glad you did.”

“Of course!” Kara smiles and gestures with her arms. “I would never leave you like that, Lena. You’re my best friend. It’s sort of my job to make sure you’re taken care of.” 

“Well, just let me know when I can return the favour.” Lena smiles softly, blushing, and Kara looks down at her shoes, biting her lip. 

“You probably won’t have to. I don’t really get sick,” she explains, “But hey, we missed a lunch date because of this stupid flu, maybe you can let me know another date that would work for you to make up for it?” 

Lena chuckles softly and nods. “I’ll text you,” she promises, “See you later, then?”

“Yeah,” Kara agrees, “see you.” She hesitates for another second and Lena wonders if there’s more she wants to say, but then Kara ducks out, giving one last wave before disappearing down the hallway. Lena closes the door behind her. 

Kara called her her best friend. Kara called her her best friend, and despite the fact that Lena has spent the last three days throwing up all over her, Kara stayed, and then she called her her best friend. And it was okay. Lena showed her vulnerable side and Kara didn’t run. Lena showed her darkness and Kara didn’t run. So maybe it’s okay to let herself find a friend, to put down roots. Maybe National City can become Lena’s home after all.