A/N: I know this scene (the balcony scene with Cat leaving) has probably been overdone, but I heard Tracy's Chapman's 'Give Me One Reason' this afternoon and now the damn scene is stuck in my head again. I really wasn't happy with it when I finished it, but I let it sit and simmer overnight and then took another look. It's amazing what changing just a few words or phrasings can do to make something seem better. Still not my best work, but good enough for me to put it out there.

Summary: An AU ending for the Supergirl/Cat balcony scene where Kara says goodbye to Cat.

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I don't own anything having to do with Supergirl or anything else in the DC universe.

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Supergirl landed on the balcony outside Cat's office at CatCo to find said woman leaning relaxed against the rail with a glass of her favorite scotch. Kara started with the only thing she could, "I heard you were leaving."

The two women flitted around the truth for a minute until they were both leaning against the railing, shoulder to shoulder. Cat gazed out at the city in front of her, maybe for the last time for a long while, "Did I ever tell you my name is actually Catherine?"

Supergirl let that information sink in, of course she knew that, but letting Cat know would confirm everything (and she didn't want that quite yet). Finally she pulled in a breath, "To me trust is a little like faith. Faith is believing something to be true without any evidence to support it. Trust, however, usually has some evidence behind it. The saying is 'You've earned my trust,' implying that there have been past instances where that behavior has been validated. But with each new instance, there are new variables at play – what if this new secret is too much for the person to handle and they can't keep it, what if the babysitter thinks something else is more deserving of her time than keeping a close eye on my child while they are at the park, what if your sister's partner thinks that getting this particular criminal is more important than covering her back? Now we are back to faith. You have faith that all of those things won't happen and that your trust is validated."

Cat snorted, "Now is not the time to wax philosophical, Supergirl."

Kara looked at her with a frown, "You're leaving Cat, now is the perfect time to wax philosophical."

Cat had turned to look at the blonde next to her as she spoke, "So, you've thought a lot about trust and faith, have you?"

Supergirl sags a bit more against her arms and lets out a mirthless laugh, "When you're me, you have to think about trust, and faith, a lot."

Cat runs a hand over Supergirl's shoulder, "I think I understand, it can be a lot sometimes, even for you."

Kara finally turned to look at the smaller woman, "Yes, it can be. But I want you to know that I've had faith that you wouldn't reveal who my true identity is for a while now, Ms. Grant."

At that revelation, Cat's brows furrowed, "So then, Supergirl, why haven't you told me?"

Kara put her hair into her typical ponytail and pulled her glasses from her boot, putting them on, "I didn't tell you because while I had faith that you wouldn't reveal my identity I didn't trust that you wouldn't fire me and I needed to feel human as much as I needed to be Supergirl. But now, now that you're leaving, my job really doesn't matter."

Cat tensed, snapping slightly, "What do you mean your job doesn't matter?"

Kara sighed, leaning against the railing again, "Just what I said, my job doesn't matter anymore."

Cat took a sip of her scotch, frowning at the girl standing next to her as she waved one hand around, "I was asking for clarification, not this millennial avoidance mumbo jumbo."

Kara sighed again, resting her head in her hands as she tried to keep her emotions in check. Finally she started talking again without looking up, "It wasn't the job that kept me her, Cat. It wasn't the job that kept me grounded. It wasn't the job the made me feel human, wanted and needed as me, as Kara. It was you and it has been for a long, long time." Kara finally looked up at the woman, "I told you this afternoon that I don't do well with change, particularly someone I care about leaving. Do you know why?"

Cat shook her head, not trusting herself to speak at the moment. Kara gave a mirthless laugh, "Because when you've watched your entire planet and everyone you loved destroyed in the blink of an eye, losing anyone else you love becomes really, really hard. So my job really doesn't matter because I don't know if I'll be able to even come back to CatCo knowing you aren't here, that you left me and it's probably my own fault for not telling you how I feel before now." By the time she had finished, she was sobbing into her hands.

Cat pulled the superhero into her arms, holding her as tightly as she could while her hand moved slowly up and down her back. She whispered soothingly to the younger woman, "Shhh, it's ok. I've got you."

When Kara had calmed down to just a few hiccups against Cat's shoulder, Cat pushed her back to arm's length, looking sternly at her, "Again, for clarification, how do you feel about me."

Kara gave a sheepish look before taking a deep breath in and squaring her shoulders, looking Cat directly in the eyes, "Cat, I'm so in love with you that it hurts some days."

Cat smiled at her, something Kara had never in her wildest dreams expected. Then Cat's hand slid behind her neck, pulling the taller woman towards her until their lips were less than an inch apart. Kara could feel Cat's breath mixing with her own and it was intoxicating. The held that pose for a moment until Kara realized that Cat wouldn't, couldn't, bridge that last distance. So Kara did it for her, for them. She leaned the rest of the way down, brushing her lips lightly over the smaller blonde's lips. Their first kiss was soft and chaste and everything Kara thought a first kiss should be. Even though it only lasted a second, Kara could feel it down to her toes. She heard Cat sigh as their lips broke apart before the older woman pulled her down again, pressing their lips together more firmly. Kara groaned as the kiss deepened, this was what a second kiss should be like. She felt Cat's teeth nip against her bottom lip before her tongue flicked out to sooth it. As Kara gasped into the kiss, she felt Cat's tongue sweep along her lips before she met it with her own.

When the two women finally needed air they pulled apart, panting slightly, foreheads resting together. Kara breathed out a huff before smirking, "So Cat, for clarification, how do you feel about me?"

Cat smiled before leaning up to brush her lips lightly over the taller blonde's, "Well, I think I'm too old and jaded to respond in kind this soon." She quickly kissed the frown the developed, "But…I'm pretty sure that after a few dates, those words might just be on the tip of my tongue."

Kara pulled the older woman into a hug, wrapping her arms around Cat's waist and resting her head on the smaller woman's shoulder. After a few moments she whispered, "So does this mean you'll stay?"

Cat sighed, "I can't stay Kara."

Kara pulled away, looking at the woman she had kissed, who had kissed her back, in shock. She backed away from Cat when she took a step towards her, "So what, you just wanted a plaything for a night before you took off? Why did you kiss me then Cat? Why would you do this to me?"

Cat finally grabbed the crying woman and pulled her into a hug, wrapping her arms as tightly as she could around the crying hero again. Cat whispered in her ear as she soothingly stroked her hair, "Shhh, let me explain darling. Will you please let me explain? I promise that I'm not going to treat you like a plaything and I want this to be more than one night, much more."

Kara nodded against her so Cat guided them to the loveseat, sitting them both down and taking Kara's hands in hers. When Kara wouldn't look up at her, finding their linked hands much more interesting, Cat reached up and slid a finger under her chin, bringing her face up so she could look into her eyes. When they finally locked eyes, Cat smiled, "There you are. Now, as I was saying, I can't stay. I have a set of meetings that go out for about a month starting tomorrow evening. Some of them I've had to trade favors for and there is no way I can back out and even hope of getting them rescheduled. This just means that I'll be travelling a lot more than I was planning between National City, Metropolis and DC." Then she smirked at the younger woman, "And if I can't get back soon enough for you, there are always other means of transportation for you to come see me."

Kara gave a shy smile, "So you're not leaving leaving?"

Cat rolled her eyes, "It's a wonder you millennials can communicate at all when you talk like that. I'm half surprised you didn't tell me that you liked liked me."

Kara snorted at the snarkiness of the woman she adored, "Well I do like like you, Cat."

Cat leaned in and rested her head on the superhero's shoulder, "I know, silly girl. And I'm not leaving leaving."

Kara wrapped the smaller woman up in her arms, pulling her down against her chest as she leaned back into the loveseat, "So, what are all of your meetings about?"

Cat gave a small smile into Kara's chest, "Well, I'm starting a new charity to help aliens deal with 'coming out' under the new Alien Amnesty Act. Its main goal will be to help with things like finding a place to live, shelters if their needed, legal fees, finding jobs." She waved her hand through the air indicating that there were other things that were beneath mentioning at the moment. She smiled up at the blonde superhero, "I could really use your opinions on what else might be needed, if you're willing to help."

And there it was, for the first time since that morning in the office before Cat had announced she was leaving, the smile that Cat had become so accustomed to seeing every day. Cat realized in that moment, she was really, truly in trouble because she would do anything to see that smile.

Kara beamed down at her, "I'd love to help!"

Cat gave a crisp nod in acknowledgment before responding, "Good. But we have plenty of time to talk about that later." She slid her hand to the back of Kara's neck, applying pressure to guide the younger woman down towards her, "Right now, I think we should spend a little more time doing this." She finished just before Kara's lips contacted hers for a soft, slow kiss.

Kara broke the kiss just long enough to respond, "Mmmm…good idea."

The two women both knew that they had a lot to talk about, but for now, for tonight, they could just ignore it and focus on each other. Everything else really didn't matter.