AN: Since I have been missing Sanvers lately, I decided to dust off one of my old fic ideas and write some fluff. I'm also trying to get over my pathological aversion to writing smut. There is a wee bit in Chapter 2 (and there may be a wee bit in Chapter 5, but I haven't decided yet.) This is a short one (only about 15k words total), and the rough draft is done. I still need to do some editing, re-writing, and maybe a few small additions, but it should be posted within a week, if not sooner.

I would call this canon inspired. It hits some of the same notes and events from 2B, but not always in the same order, or with the same outcomes.

As always, I would love to hear what you think.

Prologue

Maggie knew it was a bad idea. Knew that it would almost certainly end in disaster. That one of them was bound to get hurt. That it would probably be her. Yet, even knowing this, she couldn't help herself. Resisting Alex Danvers was something she wasn't strong enough to do. Wasn't something she really wanted to do.

So, decision made, Maggie had gone to her apartment and bridged the gap that she knew Alex would never cross. It was Maggie's choice. Alex had been willing to settle for friendship. Maggie was going to have no one to blame but herself when it all went up in flames. And it would; of that Maggie was certain.

Her one faint glimmer of hope was that maybe, just maybe, something could be salvaged from it all. She wasn't young, or naive, or blinded by the intoxicating blush of first love. She was going into this with a battered heart, and her eyes wide open.

She knew the relationship wouldn't last; it couldn't. Even if this hadn't been Alex's first relationship with a woman, Maggie's relationships never worked out. Maggie had made the mistake of thinking this time would be different before. She and Erica had only been dating for a month, but Maggie had really thought they had a chance. They got along well, made each other laugh, the sex was great, and Erica had seemed to understand the demands of her job. Or so she thought until Erica had announced it was no longer working. That Maggie was too focused on work, and didn't put enough effort into their relationship.

She had been sure that this time, with this woman, it finally had a chance of working. She had been so careful to make the time to spend with Erica, to not cancel a date unless there was simply no way to avoid it. To be sure to make it up to her when she did have to cancel. It still hadn't been enough. The worst part was that Maggie had been blindsided. Usually, she could see the breakup coming, but not this time.

That's why this time forewarned was forearmed. Maggie was convinced that the [key] to keeping her heart intact was accepting that the relationship wouldn't last. Knowing that, she could stop herself from getting too invested. Even if the relationship with Alex was destined to be a temporary one, Maggie would enjoy it while it lasted. If she played her cards right, and kept everything light, when the breakup finally came, and Alex realized that she wanted to experience more than Maggie had to offer, Maggie was hopeful they could still remain friends.

She hadn't lied when she told Alex that she couldn't imagine her life without her in it. It would be painful, to see Alex with someone else, but it had to be better than not seeing her at all. Maggie just selfishly wanted some memories. Memories she could look back on when Alex inevitably moved on.

There was risk, but Maggie wasn't reckless. The [key] was to have a plan. A set of guidelines to help ensure that they would both would escape from this with as little injury as possible. That at the end they could part with Alex's friendship, and Maggie's heart, hopefully, still intact.

Five simple rules.

Rule 1. Keep it casual. Have fun, enjoy yourself, but don't let it get too serious.

Rule 2. No sleepovers. Sleepovers would only lead to confusion.

Rule 3. No celebrating holidays. Holidays were a potential minefield of family expectations and shared futures.

Rule 4. No meeting the family. Nothing said potential long-term plans like meeting each other's families.

Rule 5. Don't fall in love. Under any circumstances.

Maggie looked down at her list and nodded her head, satisfied. The only rule Maggie was really worried about was number five. She could control her actions, but her feelings were another matter entirely. It was by no means a foolproof plan , but its mere existence gave Maggie a sense of comfort. Surely, if she knew that the relationship was destined to end, she could prepare and help soften the blow to her heart.