Chapter 2
"You still with me over there, Danvers?" Maggie asked. Her girlfriend was being unusually quiet, and Maggie knew her well enough by now to suspect that she was silently freaking out.
"What? Oh, yeah..I was just," Alex gestured vaguely out the window. "Taking in the scenery."
Maggie took her eyes off the road to give her girlfriend a teasing smile. "Now I know you're lying. We've been on the road for 30 minutes, and the scenery hasn't changed for the last 28."
Maggie's parents, or more accurately her mom, had offered to pick the pair up from the airport in Lincoln. Maggie had declined the offer, figuring, correctly, that Alex was still a little uncertain about this whole meet the parents thing. Not wanting her mother to overwhelm Alex right after they got off the plane, and send her in search of the first flight back to National City, Maggie had decided to rent a car.
Plus, it had been almost five years since she had been home, and she had her own bag of mixed emotions to deal with. The roughly one hour drive, would give her just that little bit of extra time to gather herself.
Alex huffed, and closed her eyes briefly, before opening them to smile sheepishly at Maggie. "I may be a little bit nervous."
"Alex, you've fought super-humans bent on total global destruction, and won. These are just my parents."
"Exactly!" Alex cried.
Maggie laughed. "Babe, relax. You have nothing to worry about. My mom gets along with everyone."
Alex frowned. "What about your dad?"
"Like I said, my mom is gonna love you." Maggie said the statement in jest, but it held a kernel of truth. She hadn't wanted to freak Alex out, but she wasn't entirely sure how her dad was going to react. He had never really said anything, positive or negative, about her being gay. Knowing her dad wasn't the most talkative, she had taken his lack of condemnation, as a form of, if not approval, at least a form of acceptance. But she didn't exactly make it a habit to bring home women to meet the family, and she wasn't sure how he would handle having her, she grimaced internally at the word, "lifestyle", so prominently displayed in his home.
"Maggie…" Alex said, a thread of warning in her tone.
Maggie reached over and grabbed Alex's hand, bringing it to her lips to kiss her knuckles, before resting their joined hands on Alex's thigh. "Alex, I'm just kidding. You seriously have nothing to worry about." Maggie paused a beat. "Besides, even if they hated you, they would consider it rude to say so."
"Maggie!" Alex tried to jerk her hand, Maggie was sure to try to swat at her, but she held it pinned firmly in place.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't resist," Maggie said with a laugh. "You're adorable when you get all flustered."
"Maggie, I am not adorable. I am an elite agent for an intragalactic paramilitary organization. I know over 6 ways to interrogate a suspect using only my index finger, 8 ways to subdue a suspect while handcuffed, and 4 ways to kill a person without weapons."
"That's so hot," Maggie confessed. She wasn't joking. Knowing that Alex was such a badass, but that she also turned into a flustered, stuttering, mess at the prospect of meeting Maggie's parents, was an immense turn on. The dichotomy that was Alex Danvers was something Maggie thought she may be happy spending the rest of her life trying to figuring out.
Alex rolled her eyes, but the flush spreading up her neck, let Maggie know that she was secretly pleased by the praise. Even after almost a year, Alex seemed surprised that someone, that Maggie, actually liked her, and wanted her. Maggie could relate, since she still routinely had to pinch herself when she remembered Alex seemed to feel the same way about her.
Maggie ran her thumb over the back of Alex's hand. "Seriously sweetheart, everything is going to be fine, and if you really want to, we can find a place in town to stay." Maggie hoped that Alex didn't actually take her up on that offer, because unless things had changed drastically in the last five years, highly unlikely, there wasn't really any place to stay.
"What? No, Maggie," Alex insisted with a shake of her head. "It's been ages since you've seen your parents. I'll be fine. It's good." Alex mustered a weak smile. "I'm probably just over-thinking it."
"You? Over-think? Never," Maggie deadpanned.
Maggie pulled the car to a stop in front of the modest, two story farm house. Gazing at the white clapboard structure, she was struck by both a sense of familiarity, and foreignness. Objectively, nothing about the house, and surrounding yard, had changed, yet none of it felt right.
She had barely turned off the ignition when the screen door was thrown open; the spring, well worn after years of use, not preventing it from bouncing solidly off the wall of the house. Her mom had been asking her dad to replace that spring for years.
She knew she only had a few moments. She turned to Alex. "I apologize in advance." Alex frowned softly in confusion, but Maggie knew that she would figure it out soon enough. Getting out of the car, and closing the door behind her, she leaned back slightly, and braced for impact.
She didn't have long to wait, since her mother had been making her way quickly across the hard packed dirt that had always served as their driveway. Her mother looked older, a little more worn around the edges, and Maggie felt a pang of guilt for staying away for so long.
She raised a hand in greeting. A wave? Really, Sawyer, she cursed herself. Why was this so awkward. "Hey Ma…" Whatever other greeting she had been planning was cut off as she was engulfed in her mother's embrace. Her mother's arms were wrapping firmly around her back, pinning her to her chest. She felt a kiss pressed to her neck, her cheek, the arms squeezed hard. Maggie momentarily stiffened, before sinking into the hug, wrapping her own arms around her mother just as tightly, tears inexplicably pricking her eyes.
It took her a moment to realize that her mother was talking. "It's so good to see you. You're father will be so happy. He's been so excited all weekend. Was your flight okay? No turbulence? I know that flying isn't your favorite. Remember that time we went to go visit Cousin Denise in Green Bay and we hit that horrible storm, and you threw up all over yourself? You never liked flying after that.
How was the ride down? I trust traffic was good. Where are your bags? Larry! Maggie is here, get out here and help with her bags! I swear, your father." Maggie was prepared to try to answer at least one of her mother's questions, when she felt the woman's focus shift over Maggie's shoulder. Sometime in the whirlwind of her mother's greeting, Alex had gotten out of the car.
She was standing by the passenger door, hands twisting nervously in front of her, eyes wide and uncertain. Maggie's mother put her hands on Maggie's shoulders, and pushed her to one side. She had a new target.
Smiling broadly, her mom started to walk around the front of the car, to a still slightly shell shocked Alex.
"You must be Alex. Maggie has told us so much about you. I'm Deborah, but everyone calls me Dee. I'm so glad you were able to make it. I have been bugging Maggie for months to bring you home to meet us. I told her if she wasn't going to come visit, then I was going to drag her father to National City."
"Hi," Alex said, with the same shy uncertainty that Maggie still remembered from Alex's confession in the bar. "It's nice to finally meet you Mrs. Sawyer." Alex extended her hand in greeting. Maggie briefly considered intervening, but decided that Alex was going to have to get used to it eventually.
As she suspected, her mom gave the hand one cursory glance, brushed it aside, and crushed Alex in a tight hug. "Nonsense. We don't really stand on formality, and you're practically family." Alex stood ramrod straight, clearly not used to being grabbed and hugged by complete strangers. Alex finally brought her hands up, and rested them somewhat awkwardly on Dee's back. After a few moments, when her mom still hadn't released her girlfriend, Maggie decided the time to intervene had arrived.
Maggie walked to the pair, and pulled her mother away. "Ma, let the poor girl breathe, you're going to send her running before we even have a chance to unpack." Alex gave her a grateful look, and Maggie winked in reply.
The mentioned of unpacking clearly jogged her mother's memory, and she looked back toward the house, hands on her hips. "Where is your father? Larry! Get out here!"
Maggie rested her hand on her mom's shoulder. "It's fine, Alex and I can get the bags. We only have one each."
"That's not the point," Dee huffed in irritation. Before her mom could yell once more for her wayward father, Maggie heard the squeak of the screen door hinge. Like with her mother, she noticed the passage of time on her father's features. There was more grey in his hair, and more creases around his eyes; his long hours in the sun taking their toll on his skin, and leaving it weathered, and deeply tanned.
"Hey, Dad," Maggie offered, again, with the same awkward wave. Unlike her mother, her dad did not rush across the yard to wrap her in an effusive hug. It simply wasn't his way.
"Maggie," he offered in greeting, his eyes flicking briefly to Alex, but not saying anything.
"Well, don't just stand there like stumps!" Dee broke in, annoyed. "You haven't see each other in five years." Taking matters into her own hands, Dee placed a hand on her husband and daughter's backs and pushed the two together.
Maggie gave her dad a resigned half smile. They knew resistance was futile. Maggie clasped her dad in a somewhat stilted embrace that ended far sooner than Maggie would have liked. Dee looked far from pleased, but was apparently willing to let it go at the moment; she had more pressing issues to attend to.
"Larry, get the girls' bags and take them up to the guest room. Girls, have you eaten? You must be hungry. Come with me. I made a stew earlier. Or I have some leftover roast chicken. Alex, do you like pie? I made an apple yesterday, but if you would prefer something else just let me know, and I can whip something up."
Her mom started walking toward the house, trusting that everyone would do as she had instructed. Maggie reached over to her stunned looking girlfriend and grabbed her hand, pulling her along.
"You doing okay?" Maggie asked quietly.
Alex blinked silently a few times, before clearing her head with a shake. "Yeah, I'm just...Wow, your mom is...Yeah."
Maggie laughed. "Now you know why I apologized."
"So Alex, Maggie tells us you're a scientist," Dee said. The foursome was gathered around the table for dinner.
Maggie felt a poke against her leg, and looked down to see the family's aged Bassett Hound, Gertie, staring at her imploringly. She ignored the soulful brown eyes, well used to resisting their plea for morsels of food.
"Yes," Alex answered with a nod, after swallowing hastily. "I work for an R&D lab in National City."
"That must be interesting," Dee offered with a smile.
Alex nodded her head. "It is. Definitely never a dull moment," Alex replied, sharing a quick glance, and a secret smile, with Maggie. If her parents even knew the half of it. Though it sometimes seemed like the worst kept secret, Alex's job was technically classified, so they couldn't tell Maggie's parents the truth.
"What kind of degree do you need for that kind of work?" questioned Larry, drawing Maggie's attention. She wasn't sure, but she thought she detected...something...in his tone. The only science her dad cared about, was the science involved in growing and maintaining the trees that were the lifeblood of the family tree farm. If she were an optimist, she may take it as him showing genuine interest in her girlfriend. Maggie had never been much of an optimist.
"I have a bachelor's in Genetics, a Master's in Mechanobiology, and a Ph.D. in Biomechanical Engineering." Maggie felt her eyebrows raise slightly. It wasn't that she didn't already know this about Alex, she did, but hearing it all laid out like that was still impressive.
Larry looked at Alex thoughtfully. "Aren't you a little young for all those degrees?"
Alex shrugged, tipping her head to one side. "A little, I guess. I managed to finish the bachelor's and master's in five years, instead of taking six or seven, so that sped things along a little bit."
"She's a nerd," Maggie told her dad, with a wink towards Alex. Leave it to Alex to be modest, her girl was a certified genius. Alex glared playfully in return.
"Doesn't seem like you two would have all that much in common," Larry said, breaking the moment between the two. Maggie looked at her father sharply.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Maggie asked defensively.
Her father shrugged. "Nothing. Just that you only went to college to get out of Blue Springs. You never seemed overly interested in school. Just seems like an odd match. Someone that has spent almost their whole life in school and…." he gestured toward Maggie.
"Gee, thanks Dad," Maggie retorted. "You know the dumb cop thing is just a stereotype right? Any others you'd like to get off your chest?" Maggie asked challengingly.
"Maggie, calm down," her mother interjected, well used to playing peacemaker between her husband and daughter. Alex remained silent, not feeling it was her place to get involved. "I'm sure he didn't mean anything by that. Right, Larry?"
Larry shrugged, shaking his head. "It was just an observation." As apologies went, it didn't even register on the scale.
"Well, I think you girls make a lovely couple," Dee offered, smiling at the both of them, still trying to diffuse the tension. "Now Alex, Maggie mentioned you have a younger sister?"
The rest of the meal passed in relative peace, but Maggie's mood had been soured by her dad's comments. Since when did he have an opinion on who she dated? She wasn't one to share all of the details of her personal life with her parents, but she usually mentioned to her mom if she was seeing someone new. While her mom would sometimes offer sympathy when another relationship went down in flames, her dad had never made a peep.
After dinner they moved into the living room. Her parents settled into their matching recliners, while Maggie and Alex occupied the couch. Sensing a new victim, Gertie wasted no time in cozying up to Alex, resting her muzzle on her thigh. If Alex stopped in her absentminded petting, Gertie would nudge her with her nose, to remind her to continue.
Maggie reached across Alex's lap to stroke her hand down the dog's long ear. They had gotten Gertie when she was in her last year of high school. The puppy she remembered now had a muzzle of almost solid white.
"I can't believe how old she's gotten," Maggie said to her mom. Her dad grunted at the comment, but kept his eyes and attention on the TV which was showing the pre-game for Monday Night Football. Maggie would have offered a retort, but she caught Alex looking at her, silently asking her not to.
Maggie bit off a sigh. This wasn't how she envisioned her homecoming. She could think of only one reason her father was being such an ass, and she didn't like it. She thought that her parents, both of her parents, were okay with her being gay. Her mother was always the more vocally supportive of the two, but her father had never done anything to indicate that he didn't also support her. If she had suspected that he was harboring issues about her being with a woman, she never would have agreed to bringing Alex home for a visit.
"She is getting up there, but she still has some life left in her," Dee offered fondly. "The Johnson's dog had puppies a few weeks ago, and your father and I were talking about maybe getting one."
"You should," Maggie insisted. "Gertie would love that."
Dee shrugged. "Maybe. But we may also be getting too old to handle a puppy around the house."
Maggie laughed, shaking her head. "Mom, you act like you and Dad are 85, and you haven't even turned 60 yet. You guys should do it. I've missed having a puppy," Maggie said wistfully. They had always had dogs when she was growing up. But living in the city, and with her job, it made getting one not only logistically difficult, but potentially unfair.
"It's not like you would be here to see it," her dad said off handedly, still focusing on the game.
"Larry," Dee said in warning. "What about you Alex, any pets?"
Alex looked up from her concentrated focus on Gertie. "Oh, no, not me. We never had pets growing up. My parents were both too busy, and then once Kara came to live with us." Alex shook her head. "There were so many more important things to worry about. A pet would have just been another thing to take care of."
"That's a shame," Dee said sadly. "Every child should have a pet. And you and Gertie seem to be getting along quite well," Dee said with a fond smile.
Alex looked down at the dog, still stroking her ears gently. "She's sweet."
Maggie rolled her eyes. "You say that now, but now that she's figured out you're willing to cater to her, you won't get a moment of peace. She will trap you there and have you pet her for hours if you let her," Maggie warned playfully, though she was dead serious. The dog was a total glutton for attention.
"I wouldn't mind," Alex insisted.
"Well I would!" Maggie teased. "I'm not sure I like the idea of having to compete for your affections." Alex looked slightly flustered by the comment. Maggie snuck a glance to see if her father had reacted to the statement, but he seemed unfazed.
"So why are we in the guest room?" Maggie asked her mother.
Her mother looked at her questioningly, head tipped to one side. "I figured you and Alex would want to sleep together." Maggie refrained from making a smart ass comment. Barely. She was not above trying to mildly needle her father to get to the bottom of his attitude, but she figured Alex would kill her if she went too far. The stern warning glare she was getting from her girlfriend further confirmed that fact. Alex knew her too well.
"Oh, yeah. Thanks, but why not my room?" Maggie asked curiously.
Dee laughed. "I figured you and Alex would prefer not to share a twin bed. You know how long it takes your father and I to change anything around the house. Keeping up with the tree farm takes up most of our free time. It's still pretty much how you left it when you went away to college."
Alex seemed to perk up at this, and leaned forward slightly. "So to be clear, what I'm hearing is that upstairs there is a virtual time capsule into 18-year-old Maggie Sawyer?"
Detecting the playful gleam in Alex's eyes, Dee smiled. "Indeed there is. I think there may even be some posters left on the walls," Dee offered, her eyes twinkling mirthfully. Though Maggie had her father's coloring, she got her teasing nature from her mother.
"Oh, this I have to see," Alex insisted. She looked at Dee seriously. "Tell me you have baby pictures."
"You better watch it Danvers, or are you forgetting that I know your sister? I'm sure she would be happy to supply me with all sorts of embarrassing information," Maggie threatened playfully.
"Alex, Maggie was an only child. I have boxes full of them. I have an entire album dedicated to 'The Year of Flannel'."
Maggie groaned, burying her face in her hands. Why had she thought this was a good idea?
"Scale of 1 to 10, how much are you regretting agreeing to come home with me," Maggie asked. The pair had finally bade Maggie's parents good night and retreated to the privacy of the guest room. Gertie had tried to follow her new best friend into the bedroom, but Maggie had put her foot down. She may have to share Alex's attention with the dog, but no way was she sharing her bed.
"It's not that bad," Alex reassured her, walking over to her suitcase. She unzipped it, and started sorting through the contents. Maggie walked over and pressed herself against Alex's back, kissing her softly on the shoulder.
"So like a 7?" she queried.
Alex laughed, and turned to wrap Maggie in a hug. "It's fine. You were right, your mom is really sweet."
Maggie frowned. "I'm sorry my dad is being such a jackass. I don't know what his problem is." Maggie noticed something in Alex's hand, and frowned. "What's that?"
Alex looked at her curiously. "Pajamas?"
"Not that I don't adore your cute PJs, but why do you have them? I thought we were going to bed."
"We are," Alex answered. "And I was planning to do what most people do with them, and wear them to sleep in."
Maggie frowned, not liking where this was going. "Since when do we sleep in pajamas?" Ever since they had first slept together, Maggie had declared all sleepovers clothing free events. Alex had been all too happy to comply.
"Since we are staying with your parents." Alex answered, the look on her face telling Maggie she thought that was obvious.
"Why should that matter? There's a door," Maggie said, gesturing to said door.
Alex just shook her head. "It's not happening, Sawyer."
"What if I still want to sleep naked?" Maggie questioned stubbornly.
Alex narrowed her eyes, not backing down. "Then I understand that there is a lovely twin bed somewhere with your name on it."
Maggie scowled. This vacation was off to one hell of a start so far.
Maggie let Alex use the bathroom first, since she apparently had to go searching for something to sleep in. Her mother was true to her word, and she was able to find on old t-shirt and some shorts in her old room. By the time she finished in the bathroom, and returned to the bedroom, Alex was already in bed, the thick quilt pulled up to her chin. Maggie smirked, someone wasn't acclimated to November in Nebraska yet. She clicked the light off, and made her way towards the bed in the semi-dark of the room.
As soon as she slid into bed, Maggie scooted over and pressed herself up against Alex's back. She pressed a series of open mouthed kisses along her neck, her hand sliding around Alex's waist. Spending all this time around her parents had put a definite damper on her usually affectionate nature.
"Hey Maggie?" Alex asked, her breath hitching slightly when Maggie's hand found the edge of her shirt, and slipped beneath to caress the soft skin covering her belly.
"Mmmm." Maggie hummed in response, nuzzling her face into Alex's neck, and biting lightly. Biting, yet still careful not to leave a mark, since she knew from experience that Alex would kill her if she left visible evidence. That had been an awkward morning briefing at the DEO with J'onn and Kara.
"What are you doing?"
Maggie drew her head back slightly, sliding her hand down Alex's stomach, and beneath the band of her sleep shorts. "I know it's been a little while, but surely you haven't forgotten already," Maggie teased. Her fingers had barely brushed the top of Alex's neatly trimmed patch of curls, when her progress was halted. Alex grabbed her hand in a vice like grip, and withdrew it from her pants, rolling onto her side so she could face Maggie squarely.
"You can't possible think that this is actually going to happen," Alex said, looking at her incredulously.
Maggie frowned. Yes, in fact she did. "Why wouldn't it happen?"
Alex looked at her disbelievingly. "We're at your parents house."
Maggie looked around her. "So you said earlier. I thought this place looked familiar,"
she joked, leaning down to kiss Alex. She was stopped just short of her target by a hand to her chest.
"I am not going to...you know...with your parents right down the hall," Alex hissed quietly.
Maggie grinned at her. "I can assure you, it's fine, they won't hear a thing."
"That's not the point...Though, we will get back to that eventually...I just don't….It feels weird," Alex confessed, looking at Maggie apologetically.
Maggie sighed and flopped onto her back beside Alex, an arm thrown over her eyes. "So you're telling me that we finally managed to take a trip together, and that there's not going to be any sex. At all."
"I'm sorry Maggie. I know it probably seems stupid to you...I just….It's not something…" Maggie immediately rolled onto her side, and cupped her hand along Alex's jaw, feeling like an insensitive asshole.
"Don't you dare apologize," Maggie insisted, her voice low and intense. "If you aren't comfortable doing something, then you don't have to do it. I'm the one that should apologize for making you feel guilty about it." Maggie kissed her softly, letting the contact linger, but not trying to take it any deeper.
"Now roll over, I want to cuddle. I assume cuddling is still okay?" Maggie could just make out Alex's smile in the moonlight that lit the room.
"Of course." Alex rolled over, and Maggie once again scooted forward, snuggling up to Alex's back, one arm thrown over her waist. Alex laced her fingers through Maggie's and Maggie sighed in contentment.