Author Notes: So, this is a just little one-shot that I wrote a while ago after reading Issue #15 of the Young Justice tie-in comic. If you haven't read the comic all you need to know to understand this story is that in Issue #15, which takes place right in between bereft and Targets, Aqualad, Miss Martian, and Superboy go to Atlantis; and during a battle against Ocean Master, Superboy's rebreather is destroyed and he can't breathe without it, so Miss Martian tries to save him. That's about all the back story you need. I hope you enjoy and please review.

Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice. It belongs to DC Comics and Cartoon Network.

A Breath of Life

Hold on, Superboy! I've got you! M'gann shouted through the mental link.

Superboy barely heard her. He was sinking and he couldn't fight it. He had no air and even Kryptonians need to breathe. This was one very simple way he could die.

Miss Martian swam to him as fast as she could. She wasn't going to let him drown, not if she could save him.

She reached out and grabbed him by the arm. She pulled him toward her, and suddenly her lips were pressed against his. She opened her mouth slightly to allow the air to flow between the two of them.

Breathe, she told him.

Superboy did as she said, taking in the oxygen, staying alive. He closed his eyes and placed his hand on her waist to steady himself as he inhaled the air.

How? Superboy asked, How are you letting me breathe?

My gills, Miss Martian answered, If I take in enough oxygen from the water, I can breathe half of it into you and still have enough air to stay conscious. Just keep breathing. You'll be fine.

Miss Martian could feel the water flowing over her neck. She was so concentrated on controlling her air intake – keeping it steady, keeping it slow – that, for almost a minute, she didn't realize that her lips were touching Superboy's.

It wasn't a kiss, not really; it was more like CPR than anything else, but they were still connected. His hand was on her waist, keeping her near, keeping her close to him. She blushed at the feeling of his skin touching hers, the warmth, the pressure, everything. It ignited her senses.

The spike in her emotions was so high that Superboy could even sense a change through their telepathic connection.

What is it? he asked, What's wrong?

Nothing! she replied quickly, trying to conceal her emotions from him.

Even though Superboy didn't know what M'gann was thinking, he felt the same way. He felt just as self-conscious, just as awkward; he just hid it better than most people.

Superboy may have been a clone, force-fed information about the world without ever really experiencing any of it, but he still knew what a kiss was. He knew what it meant, what it symbolized when it was shared between two people.

He wanted so much to pull her close, to kiss her for real, to run his hand through her auburn hair, and know that she was his; and even though he didn't know it, she wanted to do the exact same thing.

But instead, as a battle of heroes and villains raged around them and a battle of emotions raged within them, they merely floated there, deep bellow the oceans waves, breathing the same stolen air.

Connected but not together.

Author Notes: Sorry that I haven't posted anything in a while. I've been trying to do NaNoWriMo this year, and that takes up most of my writing ability. But anyway, what did you think of this story? Don't forget to tell me! Reviews are, as always, very much appreciated. :)