First of all, a very special thanks to my awesome beta-readers, without whom this story wouldn't be here now! You are great!

Then, I want you to know that I don't despise Maxwell Lord at all. I kind of ship him with Alex indeed, and I am now working on a story about them. But for the purpose of this story I had to make Alex dislike him.

Writing is so good and fun but knowing the opinion of the readers is very important too. So please, let me know what you think about this story! And if you want leave some requests about some snippets you would like to read.


Stronger together


Hank remembers the first time he met her.

She was younger and naïve. A mousy and geeky brunette, her hair flowed past her shoulders, and she wore a pair of glasses that were too big for her face.

But somehow, he knew the first time he spoke to her she was going to change his life.

And he was right, indeed.

...

"Miss Alexandra Danvers?"

Alex looked up from the papers, she was alone in the lab, working on her dissertation. It's so late that it was practically morning and the sun was starting to rise up, filling the room with a bright light.

At just twenty-three years old and interested in a career oriented toward both bioengineering and medicine she pursued the combined MD/PhD program at Stanford.

A tall and fit man was staring at her. His skin was dark and he seemed austere and authoritarian.

"Yes? It's me." She said suspiciously. "And you are?"

"Agent Hank Henshaw," he replied. He wore a black suit and a white button down shirt and he lifted his sunglasses off his face, sliding them to the top of his head. "I work for the government and I am here to recruit you."

Alex raised her eyebrows. "The government?" She looked astonished. "What would the government want from me? A lab rat?"

Hank almost smirked at her statement. He had been observing her for years, since the promise he made her father before he died, and Alexandra Danvers was anything but a lab rat. She was incredibly smart and very intelligent. But she was also very perceptive and strong. She reminded him Jeremiah a lot. Not only physically. Her eyes were just like his: big and brown, the mirror of a good and generous soul.

"Are you sure you are only a lab rat?" He asked her, getting closer to her desk. "You actually want to do spend the rest of your life in a lab? I can give you the chance to make our world a better place. For everyone."

He stressed the last word and Alex almost believed that he knew something more about her. Actually, a lot more. It' was like he knew about her alien sister.

"I-I don't know," she whispered in the end. "I want to make the difference, somehow."

"And you can." Hank said with a firm voice. "You will. Our world needs people like you, Miss Danvers."

He handed his business card to her. On it there were only his name and a phone number.

"Give me a call, if you want to accept. Good luck for your dissertation." He said, turning around to leave the lab. But then he stopped at the threshold and he added enigmatically. "The D.E.O. would be glad to have you."

Alex shows to be one of the smartest, most brilliant and capable humans he has ever met. And she looks a lot like her father. She is honest and even too principled. But she might be sassy, badass and quite scary, too. She is kind and cares about the people she loves – particularly her adoptive sister, Kara.

She is the best but he doesn't tell her that. She already knew. Alex doesn't need to be buttered up.

And yes, he might have recruited her because of her alien sister at the beginning; but things have changed since then.

Now, when he sees her and talks to her, he doesn't see her as just Kara's sister or Jeremiah's daughter anymore. He sees Alex. Just Alex, who he can't be prouder of.

Alex had been working at the D.E.O. for almost a year and she never regretted her choice.

She was a scientist and a doctor but soon she had discovered she loved action and being operative, too. Just after her graduation, she called Hank Henshaw and accepted his cryptic offer.

D.E.O. was the acronym for Department of Extranormal Operations and it was a government agency which secretly monitored those with extranormal superpowers and prevents any threats to the general public.

Despite growing up with an alien, Alex couldn't deny her astonishment the first time Hank, who was the Director of the D.E.O., explained her their work, feeling as if she had been catapulted in the Marvel Universe.

During the past year, Director Henshaw had personally trained her to fight and to handle several kinds of weapons. And Alex was very skilled. She was fast, agile and precise and soon became an excellent sniper.

Hank had been her teacher and her mentor and she admired his courage and his strength. He knew everything about Kara and she was one of the reasons he hd recruited Alex in the first place. She basically had shared a bathroom with an alien since she was fifteen and so she was a great resource for the D.E.O.

Alex was in the gym with other fellow agents, wearing her dark sweatpants and a black tee-shirt, ready for her training session and waiting for Director Henshaw.

"You look fitter than usual, Danvers," Nathan Leery said, as he approached her and Alex just rolled her eyes in response.

He was one of her agent fellows, and Alex couldn't stand him. He was tall and muscular, with blonde hair and blue-greyish eyes. He was handsome, indeed. But he was also very cocky and arrogant. Not to mention he had a reputation as a lady killer. He slept with nearly every single woman who worked there and apparently Alex was the only one who resisted him. And despised him. Thus, he obviously teased her with dirty innuendos and smutty jokes, just like this morning.

"Good morning," barked Henshaw, as he entered into the room, standing in front of them. "Take your sabers, you're going to fight with them. I'm going to pair you off. Danvers and Leers. Vasquez and MacKenzie. Norton and Jensen."

After collecting their sabers from the armory, Alex and Nathan went into the center of the gym, handing their weapons.

"Be sure that your sabers are safe. This is a training session so we don't need any victims."

"I'll take easy with you, baby." Nathan smirked and Alex ignored him, focused on her sword.

"I bet fifty bucks she is gonna knock him down in five minutes." Vasquez murmured to Norton.

Hank eavesdrops her and he couldn't help but crack a smile. He was very proud of the progress Alex did on the field and she was one of the best. And actually he didn't like at all how Nathan was always checking blatantly on her body, as though she was only a piece of meat and not one of their top ranked agents.

"Let the duel begin." He shouted and both Alex and Nathan unsheathed their sabers in the same moment.

She attacked him first and, jumping and flashing, she dodged each stroke of her rival until she shut down the match, pointing her saber at his throat.

"Very good," Hank said, going closer to his learners.

"Excellent job, Agent Danvers." He greeted her. "Anyway, be sure to not expose your right side so much."

"Yes sir." Alex nodded, smiling shyly.

"Nathan, your legs. You have to move them," Hanks added. "And, above all, you have to focus on your sword, not on your rival's body."

She is witty and quirky, too. He has always enjoyed her teasing, tongue-in-cheek comments.

But honestly, what he likes the most about Alex Danvers is her courage. She is brave to the point of imprudence at times, doesn't care about authority and is prone to break rules, all in the name of the justice.

It seems she constantly disobeys his orders, like when Jemm broke out of his cell during the earthquake or when she imprisoned Maxwell Lord after Bizzarro incident. And even if Hank is really pissed off at the beginning, he'll always calm down-eventually. He simply cannot remain angry with her.

They could not do anything to neutralize the bomb. Alex tried to stay calm but she was panicking inside.

"Get yourself out of here." Hank suddenly said.

She looked up at him, as her hands were still on the bomb, trying desperately to find a solution.

"Me?" She whispered. "What about you?"

He gave her a stubborn look and Alex widened her eyes, eventually understanding the true meaning of his words.

"Hank, no." She pleaded with him.

"I gave you an order, Agent Danvers. I said go."

Alex opened her mouth as though she wanted to tell him something but nothing came out and she nodded softly, before leaving him alone.

Fear. Angst. Worry.

As she knelt behind a car, next to Agent Norton, she felt lost and it seemed the time has stopped.

She held her breath, waiting.

Waiting for the explosion. Waiting for the pain. Waiting for the loss.

She could not lose him. Hank was her teacher, her mentor, her guide.

She respected him and cared about him. He was not only her superior. Even if they didn't have many chances to better know each other, she somehow felt connected to him. And she didn't know what she'd do without him.

But then, as she was totally absorbed by her thoughts, she saw him.

He was leaving the building, bringing the neutralized bomb in his hands.

Alex could not help but stand up and practically bounce toward him.

Her eyes were a little glassy when she stopped in front of him and he gave him a rueful smile.

Honestly, she had no idea about how he was able to deactivate the bomb but she didn't care.

He was here. Alive. And he was grinning at her.

Hank suddenly finds himself caring about Alex and her life outside D.E.O. more and more, wondering about her feelings and her thoughts. He keeps telling himself it's because of the promise he made to her father. Or that it's because he cares about all his agents. But deep down, he knows they are lies.

And he discovers he already knew a lot of personal things about her, like how she tends to ramble when she is worried, how she always wants to make the best impression on people and how she forgets to eat when she is particularly stressed. She loves rock music and always listens to her favorite compilations while working in the lab. She plays with a lock of her hair when she feels embarrassed and she is absolutely adorable when she wrinkles her nose.

Adorable. He shouldn't call her adorable. She probably would punch him for that.

It is so wrong.

He likes her, indeed. When she showed up at the base after the fake date with Maxwell Lord he felt the strands of jealousy begun to spread throughout his body from the back of his neck. She looked beautiful, wearing that tight black dress and high heels. He knew it was only work for her, but he was afraid she was somewhat intrigued by the billionaire scientist. And he couldn't blame her for that. Alex is a young gorgeous woman and she deserves to find happiness outside work. It didn't happen though, since Maxwell Lord tried to kill Kara.

The date with Maxwell Lord had been one of the creepiest experiences of her life.

He was charming and too confident and had a huge ego and an even huger God complex. And Alex actually ate snail's eggs and wore her highest heels. It was a torture.

It was not as if Alex didn't like to dress up, because she did. She absolutely despised girly frivolous dresses and sweet sappy colors but she liked taking care of herself. She liked looking neat and well-dressed and she barely left her condo without makeup on. And she had a weakness for lingerie. Bras, panties and boyshorts in the shades of black, gray, purple —and when she felt bold enough, even red— were her weak point and Victoria's Secret was her favorite boutique.

But nobody knew that, except Kara and some sloppy and geeky ex-boyfriends. And above all, Maxwell Lord completely ignored this aspect of her personality. He had blatantly stared at her and remembering his gaze roaming over body still made Alex feel sick.

Fortunately, the date was over and she only hoped Hank was able to find something at Lord Technologies. She knew how much she had asked to him.

As she arrived at the D.E.O., she immediately spotted him, sitting at one of the circle desks and watching some pictures in front of him.

"Whoa," agent Leers let out a wolf whistle, glimpsing at her outfit and Alex rolled her eyes and snorted, as she took off her shoes.

She walked barefoot toward Hank, and, just a moment before she had reached him, he turned around, spotting her.

And he saw her. He stared at her but his staring was so different from Maxwell's one. He seemed stunned, but not only by her physical appearance. His eyes were so piercing and intense that Alex almost blushed. It was like he was seeing her, truly seeing her, for the first time. And for the first time in her life, she felt beautiful.

And she guessed she liked that feeling.

But above all, he trusts her. He trusted her so much that he confessed her all about his past and his secret identity - she was the first person after her father to know about the mass extermination of his race.

He had to tell her; Alex deserved to know the truth and there is no person he trusts more.

Fighting against the White Martian and defeating him hadn't been easy at all for J'onn.

Sad memories and terrible vibes.

He leaned heavily against the wall in his office, bowing his head forward and closing his eyes. It had been a long, awful day. He believed himself to be stronger but he could not stand the memories of the extermination of his race and his family. Alex had told him he needed to react and that he needed to live, but there were some days he simply couldn't do that.

His headache was tearing his skull apart and he clenched his eyes shut so tightly, black spots danced in front of his closed lids.

J'onn didn't know what to do. He just felt completely drained and as though everything inside of him had been mashed up. The wall behind him was the only thing holding him up and his body was heavy against it.

He digged the heel of his hands into his eyes, making them hurt. He needed something. He needed to get into his car and drive away until he had no idea where he was.

He could still feel the flames and the heat, he could smell the blood and hear the screams of pain.

J'onn had to get out of here.

Alex. He didn't know why his mind immediately went to her. He forced himself to open his eyes and looked down at the watch on his wrist. It was almost midnight.

He knew where she lived. J'onn guessed it wouldn't be alright if he just randomly showed up at her building in the middle of the night; but he needed her.

He didn't remember leaving the D.E.O. and parking his car just across her apartment building.

There wasn't a janitor so he led toward the elevator and the ride until the top floor seemed extremely slow.

The elevator's doors opened and a long hallway stretched before him. He run a hand along the wall as he took a turn and walked towards the second blue door on the right hand side. He stopped there, pausing for the first time since he left.

He knocked softly at the door and after a moment, Alex appeared in the threshold.

His throat felt dry and he coughed.

"Director Henshaw," she gave him a small smile. "What are you doing here?"

She sounded reassuring and almost happy to see him and J'onn felt himself taking a step back. He should not have come here.

"Hank?" Alex repeated and her smile faded, as she touched softly his bare arm, not sure how he was going to react to human contact.

J'onn stared at her. She stood there and she was not covered with blood. She was beautiful and alive.

Alex had changed from her uniform and was now wearing a pair of black yoga pants and a purple t-shirt. Her feet were bare and he couldn't help but notice her toenails were painted a warm burgundy.

His eyes couldn't leave hers and she opened her mouth and said something but he couldn't hear her.

J'onn took a step toward Alex and they were inside her apartment, she closed the door behind him and he reached out and touched her cheekbone with his index finger. She was quiet now, staring at him as well.

"You are warm," he murmured.

"Hank," she said his name and he shook his head. "J'onn."

Alex nodded, feeling a slight pang in her heart.

"J'onn," she repeated. "Come with me."

J'onn didn't ask where. Alex took hold of one of his hands, trapping it between both of hers, and she slowly walked backwards, never turning away from him, bringing him with her.

They were at her overstuffed gray couch. J'onn looked down at it. It was covered with lots of colored throw pillows and there was a deep blue blanket draped over it.

"Sit," she said softly and gently guided him into the couch, sitting down beside him.

Her hands came to his shoulders and he clenched his eyes shut. Alex didn't speak, she didn't need to say anything. She could barely imagine how he could feel right now.

Alone. Lonely. Sad.

Maybe she was crossing some professional lines she shouldn't cross, but her hands suddenly cupped his cheeks, her thumb brushing along his jaw.

"I'm right here. You are not alone," she whispered and J'onn couldn't help it.

He couldn't remember when the last time had been, but sitting there, his eyes staring into Alex's and her hands slowly caressing his face, he felt moisture on his cheeks and he realized he was crying.

Alex wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly, not letting him go.

It was the first time they shared such a physical contact but it felt so right. Alex was hugging him, murmuring comforting words into his ear as he cried.

"It's okay, J'onn," she whispered softly, hushing him. "It's okay. Everything will be okay."

And her words only made him cry harder.

Since then, something has changed.

They keep spending a lot of time together, working and fighting against the enemies but now they talk a lot, too. It's not like they have crossed some professional line, because they have not. They just share random information about their feelings and their lives.

He finds himself telling her about his past life on Mars, specifically about his family and his work —he used to be a kind of doctor. She always listens to him, totally captivated by his words. She is curious and seems eager to know everything about him.

Alex talks a lot too. She tells him about her wonderful childhood and how she used to go fishing with her dad. She talks about Kara. Alex confesses him that being the sister of a perfect alien girl may be quite challenging, indeed.

They usually ate their meals together in his office or in her lab. Nothing fancy and, for the most part, they just ate together in silence until one of them started talking about casual things.

That day, they were in his office, sitting at his desk, one across the other.

Hank reached into his lunch bag and pulled out a mottled red-green apple, taking a gigantic bite.

Alex couldn't help but wrinkle her nose, chewing the last mouthful of her cheese and ham sandwich.

Hand noticed it and, after swallowing his bite, he raised his eyebrow quizzically. "What?"

"Yuck!" Alex shrugged, pointing at his apple. "You are eating an apple."

"So?"

"I hate apples. Really hate them. I think they shouldn't be allowed to be a fruit*." She explained seriously.

"You are insane." Hank stated, shaking his head.

"Maybe," Alex smiled before taking a sip of water. "But I've just wondering about your sanity since you eat such disgusting food."

He looked at the apple and then at her. "I like them. They remind me a fruit I used to eat on Mars."

"Oh." Alex immediately felt bad. She could barely imagine what losing all your world and family could actually mean. J'onn and Kara were quite similar after all and she felt almost egoistical and shallow when she worried about the tiny problems of her life.

And, at that moment, her biggest problem was not understanding her feelings toward her chief. She knew something had changed, since he came to her place in the middle of night, looking for comforting and human contact.

They remained in silence, until she blurted out: "And yet, the funny fact is that I absolutely love apple juice. It's quite odd, indeed."

Hank cracked a small but authentic smile and she felt relieved. Alex was happy she could make him smile. Hank was always so serious and detached, and she was glad when she could see a small opening in the barrier he had built around him.

"You are definitely my most insane agent," He smirked and Alex gave him a toothy smile, saying: "But I am the best one, too. And you love me, no matter what."

Suddenly, even if she was only joking, Hank was left speechless and he certainly didn't notice how Alex had blushed as soon as she realized the exact meaning of her words.

It has been casual and so natural —at least until Friday.

They both had been working for hours, hunting another alien escaped from Fort Rozz, and she was still doing some researches in her lab when Hank found her. He had been sure she left hours ago.

He was exhausted and was craving a burger from the drive-in close to his apartment. Not to mention there was a Twilight Zone marathon that night on TV and Hank had always been fascinated by that TV show. Once arrived to the Earth he had tried to adapt to this new environment and its customs. He wanted to fit in his new life and in this way he didn't have to think so much about his past.

Alex seemed very tired and probably she hadn't eaten anything for hours.

"What are you doing here still?" He frowned.

She looked up at him from her microscope, biting nervously her lower lip. "Actually, I'm using work as an excuse. My mom is in town and she apparently has set me up with a blind date with the son of one of her friends-"

He raised his eyebrow and she smiled a little. "She is obsessed by my romantic life. Or rather, lack of. So, I told her I can't make it because I'm still at work, completely swamped."

He couldn't help but feel happy about her refusal. And immediately he told himself it's because he was like a father for her and usually fathers were jealous and over-protective of their daughters. Though, even he had some doubts about that.

"You aren't vegetarian, are you?" He asked her suddenly and Alex stared at him curiously. "No. You know I'm not."

"Yeah, you are right," He agreed and scratched his right ear, feeling a little embarrassed. "And what do you think about The Twilight Zone?"

Alex grinned widely. "I am absolutely in love with that TV show. Sometimes I feel like my life could easily inspire one of its episodes."

He nodded, smirking. Then glancing at his wristwatch he said: "There is a marathon tonight on TV. So we can pick up some burgers at a drive-in close to my place. You have to eat something and this could be an alternative to your date. Not that it's a date, obvious-"

Alex quickly stood up, grabbing her leather jacket. "Let's go."

They ate cheeseburgers and had two beers each, comfortably sat on his couch. Occasionally he would look over to Alex in the dark living room, her face illuminated by the television, and she would be staring at the show with complete captivation even though she told him that she had seen it a dozen times. And Hank smiled to himself.

As the episode ended, she glanced at her wristwacth. "I should go," She said and she started to stand up.

He wanted to tell her to stay, that there was another episode after this but he couldn't. So, he made sure she had all her things, rode the elevators down with her and went out on the street. Hailing a cab for her even if she told him that he didn't have to do that.

"Thank you so much for tonight, Han- J'onn." She corrected herself. "I had a great time."

He noticed Alex is hardly meeting his eyes and he wondered why. And she had called him J'onn. It felt truly right on her lips.

"Good night, Alex."

When he saw her into the taxi and it drove off, he went back up into his apartment and started cleaning. He could smell the lingering scent of her perfume hanging in the air.

And he knew he had just crossed a line he should never have crossed.

Things become a little weird and he has to admit he feels slightly uncomfortable when she is around. And Alex is always around. But he keeps acting in the most professional way, pretending that nothing has changed. He busies himself in work and so they don't have many chances to share their meals, nor to chat as they used to do. He knows Alex is not an idiot and she probably has figured he is trying to distance himself from her, but he can't help that. He is afraid about his feelings and he doesn't understand them.

But, he misses her.

And when he comes back to his place, lying on his dark leather couch and watching an episode of The Twilight Zone, he finds himself thinking a lot about her. He sees the spot where Alex has been sitting, just a week before, and he thinks about her smile, which is so sincere and infectious, her dark and deep eyes, her pale skin and the faint freckles she has on the bridge of her nose.

She is a beautiful person and he starts doubting his feelings toward her.

Because when he thinks of her, another person from his past pops in his head and so his fear grows.

Not his daughters, but his wife.

After losing everything, J'onn has never thought he would be able to build a new life, to smile, to feel.

When he arrived on Earth, he was empty and lonely. He did not cry, did not shout, did not suffer. It was as though he had no emotions, no feelings. Nothing.

Slowly he started to survive, until he met Dr. Jeremiah Danvers. He was clever and kind and a good human and he gave him a purpose.

J'onn rebuilt the D.E.O., reformed it and, above all, he took care of Jeremiah's daughter. Alex.

Obviously, he cares about Kara too. He is so proud of that cheerful and impetuous girl, but Alex has always been his priority. He can't deny it. And it is Jeremiah's will, as well.

Jeremiah knew his daughter has sacrificed so much, since she was fifteen, only because he told her to do so. And Alex has always obeyed her father. Soon, she learnt to love Kara and now they are real sisters, but that doesn't change the past.

So, from that very first moment, J'onn has kept an eye on her. And he has always believed that for the past years he has done it as a father. But it is a lie.

He can tell he has never considered Alex like one of his daughters. He knows the feelings he has toward her are very different from those he has for Kara or those he had for K'hym and T'ania.

His feelings for Alex remind him those he has for his wife. And they are not proper, he has to suppress them.

Alex deserves someone so much better than him. A smart and handsome guy, who can give her his love and who, above all, is from this planet. Alex deserves some normal stuff in her life. And normal stuff does not include over-centenarian green Martians with a bunch of superpowers.

He cannot betray her in this way.

Alex was a wreck. A complete, huge wreck.

She felt emotional and regretful and guilty. After leaving Kara's studio apartment she came back at her place and collapsed against the front door.

Now, she was still there, sat on the hardwood floor, hugging her knees against her chest and crying.

She had been crying so much that day. First Kara and the Black Mercy, then Krypton and now this. She had killed Astra. She betrayed her sister and she lied to her.

Not to mention Hank had practically ignored her for the past week. There was a dull pain in her chest and she couldn't breathe.

Empty. Hurt. Lonely.

She had nothing. More tears flowed on her cheeks and she was sobbing continuously. A sudden soft knock distracted her and she jumped a little.

"Alex?"

She could hear the muffled voice of Director Henshaw coming from the hallway. "Alex, let me in. I know you're there."

"I just need to be alone right now," her voice was shaking and tight. "Please, just leave me alone."

"I know you're hurting but you can't be alone, now. You're out of your mind if you think I'm going anywhere," he said. "If you're going to sit there and crying, then I'm going to sit out there, waiting for you."

And just like that, Alex felt the door press back in its frame and she realized he was now leaning against the other side of it.

She occasionally sniffled and blew her nose but for the most part, everything was very quiet. It was strange.

"You are broken." He finally spoke. "I perfectly understand how you are feeling right now."

He sighed and kept talking softly, hoping this could help her. "Killing someone is never simple. You reacted and-"

"It's not only that," she whispered and he raised his eyebrow, curious about her explanation.

"What do you mean?"

"Killing Astra, lying to Kara devastated me… B-but seeing what Kara's perfect and utopic world would be -well, that's what really broke me."

Alex couldn't help but start to cry again and she kept speaking between sobs and hiccups.

"There was no Earth. Nothing about her life here. Nothing about me. I failed."

"Alex," he said her name again.

"Please, let me talk. If you interrupt me, I won't be able to continue." She blew her nose again, pressing her head against the door and shutting her eyes. It was almost too painful, confessing her true feelings. "I failed because if Kara wants to be so much on Krypton, then she has never considered this place as her home. I love her so much and since I was fifteen, I've given up all my life for her. And in her happy world there is no trace of Danvers family. Even Astra was there, for God's sake!"

Alex sighed heavily and she run a hand through her hair, she was actually shaking. "It's like she betrayed me. And obviously I feel guilty for thinking that because I can only imagine what losing everything could be. But I can't help it. So, when Astra was going to stab you, I reacted."

"I am so grateful you did it. You saved my life, Alex. Again." He said.

"I couldn't let her kill you, J'onn." she mumbled. "I couldn't lose you. But maybe killing her wasn't needed. Maybe I could have stopped her. M-maybe if you didn't come I could even have saved her."

"Alex," J'onn sighed heavily. "I know you believe she was going to change, but she was threatening you. I had to intervene. I—"

"Why?"

"I couldn't lose you, either. I couldn't let you die."

"Because of my father." She stated.

"No," J'onn shook his head. "Because of you."

She silently stood up and swings opened the door, catching him completely off guard and he fell backwards, banging his head against the hardwood floor of her apartment.

"Ouch," he groaned.

"Oh my goodness!" Alex gasped, kneeling next to him. "I am so sorry."

"Thank God I can't be wounded so easily," he joked, lifting himself in a sitting position.

Though her eyes were red and puffy and she was still shaking slightly, she gave him a small smile.

"Thank you, J'onn." Alex leaned toward him, putting her hands on his shoulders, and she pressed her lips against his in a soft kiss.

And it seemed the rightest thing to do. It felt the best thing to do.

As though their lives restarted in that moment, as they were crouched down on the hardwood floor of her apartment, kissing in silence.

They needed no words, no explanations.

...

They simply belong to each other and that's all.


*That is a quote by Lexie Grey (played by Chyler Leigh) from Grey's Anatomy.