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Disney Magic
Kara has always had an eclectic taste in music. Not that Lena really minds; if anything she gets more than her share of amusement from the sudden swings in mood and tempo and genre. But the songs Kara sings along to are the ones Lena pays the most attention to, and, well, her mind can't help making connections, finding pattern in information even if there's no intention there. So whenever Kara is cooking or cleaning or in the shower and singing while she does, Lena can't help herself, and over the course of a few weeks she starts to connect dots.
Because something is there, Lena's sure. Because it's not just the songs that Kara sings along to, it's the lingering looks, the glances down to her chest when she wears a low cut top, the physical affection (even if Kara is affectionate with everyone, Lena can't help noticing how much more she is with Lena), the way Kara goes out of her way to check in, to bring her food, to lift her spirits when she's down. It's everything they've been through and overcome.
It starts with a jaunty little tune that Lena enjoys more than she lets on, if only so she can tease Kara for how much she enjoys it. The song is a battle of sorts, between the main singer and the backup singers. She guesses the title from the chorus, and a glance at Kara's phone proves her right when she sees 'I Won't Say I'm In Love' scrolling along the screen. She especially enjoys the exasperated rasp in the main singer's voice when she implores the backup singers to "get off my back", and she spends the next week saying it to Kara whenever Kara gives her a hard time about working late.
Next is a song that even Lena has heard before, though she wouldn't be able to say where since she never saw the movie. A Whole New World, a promise made from the prince to the princess that he'll give her anything she desires, a plea for the princess to open her heart. And if that isn't what Kara has done for her then Lena isn't sure what would be more apt. She's opened herself up to Kara, to Kara's friends who are kind of hers now as well, to game nights and cheesy movie marathons and lunch dates and leaving work on time more often than not. And she's sure that, much like the princess in the song, Lena can't go back to where she used to be, not after having her eyes opened by her prince- er, Kara.
There's a stirring song that Lena laughs at because of the voices Kara pulls. But as she listens to the lyrics she's sure that there's no way the song isn't about her. A girl paler than the moon, who would marvel at Kara's strength, who- well, she couldn't cook, but she signs up for classes before Kara even finishes singing. But she definitely has a brain and always speaks her mind, and Kara has said over and over and over again, almost enough times for Lena to believe her without reservation, that she'll fight for Lena. And she has fought for Lena, to her own detriment and pain, and Lena is struck by how much Kara has done for her. A girl worth fighting for, and the idea sets her heart aflutter.
It's a villain's song next, Lena can tell, but sung with a passion that blows her away. Kara sings about the sun caught in raven hair that blazes out of control, and Lena hopes that the burning desire really will turn Kara to sin. She knows she wants to sin herself, that the sun in Kara's smile, the spark in her eyes, the beauty of her siren's song have all conspired to set a Hellfire in her soul, and she wants to let it burn, burn for Kara.
The songs only get more obvious, Lena thinks, when Can You Feel The Love Tonight plays and Kara sings along while she's showering before one of their movie nights. She tries to ignore the spoken words of the two love interests that hit too close to home, a hidden secret from the prince and ignorance from the princess (Lena guesses, having never seen the movie, but aren't all Disney movies about princes and princesses?), and focuses on the chorus instead, the chorus that rises and speaks to her very soul, of love and peace and harmony. They found their own messy way through their secrets, their uncertainties, and she hopes that love can see them through any more that might crop up.
The next is soft and sweet and simple. It gets to Lena in a way she doesn't expect. It's uplifting, and Lena knows that Kara can fly and touch every star in the sky, but she almost believes that she can as well when Kara sings the lyrics and her heart swells. So this is love, Lena thinks, and maybe the very simplicity in the short song is what makes it so potent. Because it can be simple. Kara is bright and so good that it's easy to love her. She only hopes to deserve the miracle of Kara returning her love.
It's that hope that crystalizes her resolve. She tells herself that she'll bring it up the next time Kara sings for her, let Kara know that she got her message and she's interested, that she wants to pursue something more than friendship as well. The next time she's at Kara's for a movie night she plays music while she heats up something undoubtedly unhealthy, and the song that plays is... well, she doesn't know who Prince Ali is, but he must be the hero if the villain is singing about him in such a mocking way, and for a few seconds Lena is confused. This song goes against her theory, but then Kara rushes to her phone with a wince thrown Lena's way and skips it without singing along.
Kara lights up at the quiet opening of the next song, a conductor, maybe, calling in the different pieces of his orchestra. Then Kara starts singing along, in a truly awful Jamaican accent, and Lena laughs until Kara sings 'kiss the girl'. There's more, Lena knows, lyrics about wanting and wanting back, but she can hardly think about anything other than kissing Kara. This is a sign, she's sure, something from the universe pushing them together, and she's ready to give in.
She walks up behind Kara and nudges at her hips to turn her around. Kara looks surprised to see Lena so close, and Lena licks her lips as she takes in Kara's face. She's not wearing her glasses and her blue eyes shine out at Lena, drawing her in. Her hair is down and Lena brushes a stray lock away, then uses the same hand to caress Kara's cheek. With a bit of pressure Kara tilts her head and her eyes flutter close. Lena closes her own as well and leans in, then she's kissing Kara and it's everything the songs have told her it would be, bright and light, burning and intense, a whole new world and so familiar at the same time.
Lena pulls back and opens her eyes. Kara's stay closed for a few more seconds, and she bites her lip.
"What was that for?" Kara asks.
Lena feels her stomach drop. "Oh god I completely misread things," she says, panic overtaking her. Of course Kara hadn't meant anything by her songs, she just loved Disney and was a hopeless romantic and Lena had allowed herself to be swept along in her own feelings, had allowed them to make a pattern out of signal noise, and now-
Kara grabs her arm lightly, her eyes boring into Lena's own. "I didn't say I didn't like it," she breathes. "I just never thought..."
Lena blinks at her, too struck by Kara's hand on her arm and the intensity in Kara's eyes to really think. "Thought what?"
"That you would feel the same way about me," Kara says.
"You never thought..."
Kara gives her a hesitant look. "After I messed everything up, I-"
Lena shakes her head and fixes Kara with a glare. "No. We both made mistakes, and we've both suffered for them. I forgave you a long time ago, and I definitely feel the same way as you. As- as long as that way is more than friendly."
"Much more," Kara says, her voice low in a way that brings Lena's hellfire desire back in full force.
"So the songs weren't hints?" Lena asks as she tries to control herself. She wonders for a moment if it would be inappropriate to jump Kara's bones right there in the kitchen.
"Not- not purposefully," Kara says. "And songs? I get Kiss the Girl, it's all about overcoming doubt and making a move, but what other songs are you talking about?"
Lena opens her mouth to answer but thinks better of it. How could she explain her thought processes without sounding unhinged? She can't, she knows, so she settles for shrugging. "Just... Disney songs, I guess."
"Well whatever you heard me singing, I'm glad," Kara says. "Maybe it was just some good old Disney magic."
Lena snorts at that. "God you are a romantic."
"Says the woman who kissed me to a song called Kiss the Girl."
Lena can't argue with that.
Kara smirks at her lack of answer. "So, do I have to sing it again, or are you gonna kiss this girl?"
"It can't hurt," Lena teases.
Kara's face slips into an easy grin and then she's singing, "sha la la la la la don't stop now, don't try to hide it how, you wanna kiss the girl."
And before she can continue Lena is kissing her again, smiling at her goofy prince.