Alex woke up to the sound of a conversation in her kitchen. Her head hurt, there was a ringing in her ears and her mouth was dry. Swallowing a few times she strained her ears trying to make out the voices.
"...work? What about J'onn?"
"Already called him. He said to take as long as she needed..."
"Well does anyone else know?"
Realizing they were talking about her, she shut her eyes and rolled over to Maggie's side of the bed, trying to block them out. When she didn't feel a body next to her, flashes of the previous night came flooding back and she groaned. Outside her room the voices stopped and were replaced with the sound of footsteps.
"Alex?" Her sister's voice was quiet but still echoed painfully in her ears. When Alex didn't respond, she heard Kara walk closer to the bed. "I know you're awake. I heard your heartbeat change. Alex?"
Silently cursing Kara's alien DNA, Alex opened her eyes to see Kara hovering right over her. "Jesus!" Alex jerked away. "You can't do that to people."
Despite smelling the alcohol coming off of Alex, Kara stepped back with a smirk. "Sure thing, sis. Anyways, Maggie's here and I was going to head to work—"
"No," Alex said hurriedly. She could hear Maggie moving around the kitchen and shame settled over her.
"What? J'onn's giving you time off and someone has to stay with you when I leave. You know you can't be alone—"
"You mean J'onn is forcing me to take time off. I already told you, I don't want her to see me like this," Alex cut her off again.
"But...you were...drunk, I didn't think you meant it and she's already here." Kara's voice shook slightly but she covered it up with an uneasy smile.
"I meant what I said last night, Kara." Alex sat up, ignoring her pounding headache.
Kara's face fell. "Oh." She turned to leave, mumbling about "...going to work..."
Suddenly remembering her words about Kara not acting like a part of her family, Alex struggled to take it back. "No, Kara, that's—that's not what I meant." Her words fell on deaf ears because Kara had already brushed past Maggie, who appeared in the doorway.
Maggie watched Kara leave the apartment without her usually bubbly attitude, her face etched with concern. Steeling herself for what was sure to be a long, difficult day, she crossed her arms and turned back to look at Alex who was staring after Kara with a pained expression. "Want to tell me what that was about?"
Alex fell back against her pillows. "Dammit," she groaned, ignoring Maggie.
"Hey, I'm stuck watching you so don't give Kara a reason to melt me with her heat vision, alright?" Maggie tried to lighten the mood.
Alex glared at her, mad at Kara for leaving her with Maggie after she specifically asked her not to. "You can go to work too if you want," she said.
Maggie stepped into the room. "I"m not supposed to leave you alone."
Alex looked away, scoffing. "You can leave. It's just a bad hangover, I can take care of myself."
Maggie hesitated. "That's, um...Not really the problem. I'm supposed to stay with you until—"
"I don't want you to stay!" Alex's voice was raised and angry. "Just leave me alone, I'm an adult!"
"You're not an adult, you're an alcoholic!" Maggie's words hung in the air between them. She hadn't said it out loud until this moment, and all the bitterness she'd been feeling about the situation came out in the last three words. Unlike Kara, she had never dealt with Alex when she was what Kara had earlier called a 'mean drunk' and she didn't know how Kara managed to keep her cool. "You are an alcoholic," she repeated. "I can't trust you, Alex, and I certainly can't leave you on your own." She let out a frustrated groan. "Can't you see how much this is hurting me?"
"Oh, are you in pain?" Alex sneered, malice in her eyes. "Maybe you should have a drink." She was breaking Maggie's heart, she could see it on her girlfriend's face. She felt her own heart cracking in her chest and she knew Maggie was right but she couldn't help feeling a sense of betrayal. Maggie was supposed to be different, Maggie was supposed to love her no matter what, Maggie was supposed to have her back.
"Alex," Maggie swallowed past the lump in her throat. "You have a problem."
"The only problem I'm having right now is that you won't leave me alone." Alex turned away from Maggie and pulled the blanket higher.
"No. You don't get to do that, you don't get to just shut me out." Maggie's tone was indignant and she tugged on the blanket. "This is a relationship. There are two of us. You can't just shut out the world because—because you don't know how to deal—"
"I don't know how to deal? I'm the only one dealing with anything! I keep your world grounded, but now that I'm not there it's spinning out of control!" Alex threw the blanket off her and her tone was getting angrier but she still refused to look Maggie in the eye. "Until today, the only real thing I've ever asked you for was kids. I didn't even get to ask, because you shot me down so quickly! I've dealt with your shitty family, with you lying to me and rejecting me, and you somehow can't find it in you to try to understand?" Alex whipped her head around as she spit out the last words but it was too fast for her hungover body; her vision went dark and she grabbed a handful of bedsheets to steady herself. When her vision cleared, Maggie had her hands on her shoulders and was brushing her hair out of her face.
"Babe," Maggie started.
All the anger went out of her body. "I'm too tired to argue, Maggie. Please, just..." Alex moved out of Maggie's reach and rolled over. "Please go." She closed her eyes and felt hot tears escape her lids. "Please," she mumbled into her pillow a final time.
Maggie didn't move for a few minutes. She was staring at Alex and trying to keep her emotions in check but what Alex had said had struck a chord in her. Alex did try to keep her world together, but it wasn't exactly because Maggie asked her too, it was because they just fit together like pieces of a puzzle that were made for each other. And now Maggie couldn't be there for Alex and she was instead turning to a bottle that held more appeal than Maggie could. Maybe it was actually her fault that Alex was having such a hard time. With a sigh she headed to the kitchen. When had her life gotten so complicated? She loved Alex so much it hurt, but she seemed to be the one causing the most pain in Alex's life. Almost without thinking Maggie started to rifle through Alex's kitchen, taking all the liquor bottles there were left and stashing them in an empty bag. Her commotion was apparently enough to draw Alex out of her room because as she zipped the bag shut she heard Alex come up behind her.
"What do you think you're doing?"
Maggie picked up the bag, turning defensively. "Look, Kara may accept this kind of behavior from you, but I sure as hell won't. I don't deserve this, you don't deserve this," Maggie said gesturing to Alex who was leaning against the wall for support. "I'm trying to help you, Alex," she said in a gentler tone.
"Don't," Alex ran a hand through her hair. "Can't you just leave me alone?"
"Alex, I'm not going to be the one to enable you. I'm not going to watch you self-destruct," Maggie said angrily.
"Then don't watch me. Leave. There's the door," Alex pointed with an accusing finger.
"You know that's not what I meant," Maggie set the bag down and the clinking of bottles could be heard clearly.
"You're stealing my booze?" Alex asked incredulously. "Are you kidding me?"
Maggie sighed. "I just want to help you—"
"I just want you to get out of my life!" The second she said it Alex knew it was too much and she wanted to take it back, but it was too late, the damage was done. She saw Maggie's expression go blank and she opened her mouth to say something, anything that could smooth out the situation, but Maggie was already picking up the bag again, her mouth a tight line.
Maggie looked Alex up and down once and nodded decisively. "Got it. See you, Danvers." She walked out the door.
Hearing the door latch shut behind her seemed to drain Alex of whatever angry adrenaline she had left and she slid down the wall to the floor. She felt nauseous and panicked, and she was disgusted with herself. She had pushed Kara away, then Maggie, and for what? For a glass of scotch? A bad mood? She curled into a ball on the ground as her stomach roiled. A moment later she was crawling to the bathroom and barely made it to the toilet before the contents of her stomach came up violently. Pressing her face against the cool porcelain, she took a few deep breaths before dragging herself to her feet. She flushed the toilet with a grimace and looked into the mirror. Sadly, she recognized all too well the reflection staring back at her; heavy-lidded, red-rimmed eyes and a tangled mess of hair. Rinsing her mouth she stumbled her way to her bedroom, cursing Maggie for taking all her alcohol. Sore all over and blinking away her headache, she pulled a leather jacket on over her shirt and grabbed her keys before calling a cab, knowing there wasn't a chance of her driving anywhere. As she headed out the door she picked up a pair of sunglasses and made sure she had plenty of cash, and went outside to wait on the curb. When she got outside she looked around for Maggie, some small, desperate part of her hoping that her girlfriend had stayed. When she didn't see her she berated herself again for letting her mouth run when she was angry and hungover, and she was still mentally kicking herself when the cab arrived ten minutes later.
"Where to, miss?"
Alex double checked the amount of cash she had then slid into the backseat. "Drive twenty miles west, then drop me at the closest bar you can find." As the cab pulled away she leaned her head against the back of the seat. Rationalizing her actions was difficult, but not impossible. She had just scared off her sister and her girlfriend in one morning, and while she was pretty sure Kara would come back she didn't know about Maggie. At the very least it warranted a drink or two. Breakups, even potential ones always warranted a drink or two. And another two would cure her hangover. As the cab took her further away from home, she let out all her anger and frustration in one long sigh and focused on the fact that soon, she would be too drunk to worry about anything else.
At Cat Co. Kara had just finished typing out her proposal for the story about the bombing at Lena's building. Hitting 'print', she walked over to the printer and waited for it to process. The whole time she had been writing the outline, her mind kept drifting back to Alex and it had taken her twice as long to type than it usually did. Picking up her finished pages, she thought about dropping in on Alex and Maggie but decided maybe it was for the best that they have some time alone. As she absentmindedly stapled her outline, her phone rang.
"Lena! Oh my god, I completely forgot!" Kara answered breathlessly, feeling terrible. "I'm so sorry, I should've texted you, something came up—"
"Calm down, it's fine, you're forgiven of course. I was just wondering if you were free to have lunch in half an hour. I haven't eaten all day, and you owe me a meal." Lena chuckled at Kara's hurried apology.
"Half an hour?" Kara looked at the clock on her computer and saw it was already noon. The proposal had taken her even longer than she'd thought. "I can do that."
"Great. I'll meet you at the place we usually have brunch? It would be nice to try their lunch menu."
"Of course, I'll be there!" Kara wondered what she was going to say to Lena when she asked why she didn't make it last night, but didn't dwell on it too long. Lena was a good friend and always very understanding. With something to look forward to, Kara waltzed over to Snapper Carr's office. "Here you go, boss!" she said cheerfully, dropping the papers on his desk.
Snapper looked up, his trademark bored expression on his face. "What's this, ponytail."
"It's my proposal for the story about the L-Corp bombing."
He flipped through it. "There's barely anything here. No source, no quotes, no proof." He tossed it back on his desk and turned back to his work.
"I—I'm getting a quote from Lena Luthor later today. And, and Supergirl said Cadmus was involved." Kara deflated a little.
"And where's Supergirl's proof? The Luthor thing is good, as long as it's exclusive. I need more or it doesn't go to print." He didn't look up.
"Sure thing, boss." Kara picked up her proposal with a frown and headed back to her desk. She hadn't mentioned the article to Lena over the phone, but there would be time to talk at lunch. Logging out of her computer she grabbed her purse and jacket—it was late fall and the winds had started to pick up from the harbor. Stepping out of Cat Co. she zipped up her jacket and set off to meet Lena.
Lena had already gotten the table by the time Kara arrived, but Lena was always early for everything. She stood as she saw Kara approach and opened her arms for a hug. "Hey," she greeted her friend. Kara hugged her back and relaxed in the feeling of Lena's arms, staying there a second longer than she needed too. When Lena pulled away, Kara shivered at the cold air before sitting down, draping her purse and jacket across the back of her chair.
"So. What's new with you?" Lena asked, staring at her.
Kara stared back, realizing Lena hadn't seen her in a few days. She had seen Supergirl, but not Kara Danvers. "Not much. I'm working on an article about the bomb." She picked up the menu and looked at the burger section.
Lena raised an eyebrow. "And what are you informing the public of this time?"
Kara looked up. "Cadmus. Their involvement. Your mother. Speaking of which, I need a quote for my article or Snapper's going to scrap it."
Lena nodded. "Of course, but I'm not sure what I could say about it."
Kara bit her lip. "I was hoping you could actually talk more about...the Medusa virus?"
"How do you know about that?" Lena narrowed her eyes for a moment before remembering Kara's inexplicably close relationship to Supergirl. "Right. So you heard that I was asked—"
"To do some research on it with Winn. Yeah." Kara hoped Lena would accept the fact that she somehow knew everything Supergirl knew.
"Right," Lena said again with a strange look. "Well, what I can say on the record is I am one hundred percent sure my mother is involved, which means there's a ninety percent chance that Cadmus is as well. I know the bombing was meant as a distraction because she left me a message. As of right now I don't want to specify, but—what's wrong?" Lena broke off as Kara's face changed.
The waiter had just brought them drinks; Lena had ordered a glass of wine for herself and a margarita for Kara. Staring at the margarita, Kara's brain flashed back to the night before and her back stiffened, remembering what Alex had said. "Kara? Are you alright? I know it's the middle of the day but I thought we could relax, have a long lunch. Is that not okay?"
Kara shook her head then looked up. "No. Yes, yes I'm fine." She adjusted her glasses.
Lena noted the quick movement that Kara did anytime she was nervous and gave her a look of understanding. "Maggie told me that Alex was having some problems. Is she okay?"
"What?" Kara was startled. "What did she say? When was this?"
"She texted me from your phone last night, I assumed you knew. I texted you about dinner but she answered me instead. She just said you got caught up with something with your sister." Lena looked concerned. "Are you sure everything's alright?"
"Yeah, I just need to check on Alex really quick." Kara pushed the drink away from her and made as if to get up, but Lena put a hand on her arm and she froze at the touch.
"Hang on. You can talk to me, you know. We aren't just friends so you can get exclusive quotes."
Kara laughed nervously. "I thought we were friends because of my giant piles of money."
Lena chuckled and sat back, but the concerned expression didn't leave her face. "Now I know something's wrong, because you never talk about money with me even when we're joking. You can tell me anything and I won't judge you. I promise." She saw the waiter head over to take their orders but she waved him away surreptitiously before Kara noticed.
Kara looked at her friend and took a deep breath. For so long she had kept Alex's secret. As far as she knew, only J'onn, herself and now Maggie were aware of Alex's drinking problem. But Kara didn't want to tell people that Alex might talk to, and for the first time she was vaguely glad that her sister didn't get along with Lena. She looked back up at Lena, who gave her an encouraging smile, and stammered out the first few words.
"Alex has a...problem, and I don't...I don't really know how to help her."
Lena kept her face calm but her body language said that she was listening intently. "What sort of problem?"
"Um, well...I don't...I can't help her this time," Kara said, not really answering Lena's question.
"So she's had this problem before?"
"Yes. A while ago. Years ago. We, we worked through it but it...came back. And now I don't know what to do, and Maggie's there and I feel like I should be there with her instead but I don't know what to say because clearly whatever I did or said last time didn't help—" Kara started to ramble.
"Kara. Slow down." Lena laid her hands flat on the table. "Let's look at this rationally. If you helped her through it before, that absolutely means that you said and did the right things. Sometimes problems come back, look at Supergirl. Every alien she fights is different, and she has to find the right way to stop each one. But just because another one appears doesn't mean she didn't succeed."
"It's not like that," Kara mumbled, afraid to look up and let Lena see that she was close to tears.
Lena didn't give her a choice. Reaching across the table she put her hand under Kara's chin and raised her head until she was looking her in the eyes. "Then help me understand. Because I know you, and you are an amazing friend and the best sister anyone could ask for. So let me help you. You don't have to do this alone."
Kara closed her eyes and felt tears dripping down her face. She almost jerked in surprise when she felt Lena wiping them away, but instead opened her eyes and cleared her throat. "I..think..ahem, I think Alex is—is, um..." Lena nodded encouragingly, her expression open and worried. "She's an alcoholic." Kara's voice dropped to a whisper.
Lena paused. "Oh, Kara," she sighed after a long silence. "That is not your fault. And it's not Alex's fault either."
"How can you say that?" Kara asked with a hopeful tone in her voice.
"Because scientifically addiction is a disease. It literally changes how your brain functions, it takes away your willpower to fight it. I did some research on addiction with lab rats in college, they couldn't physically control themselves around the substances we got them addicted to." Lena spoke matter-of-factly but her eyes never left Kara's face. "It isn't your fault. You can't blame Alex and you definitely can't blame yourself," she repeated.
Kara let out a relieved breath. "You took that a lot better than I did when I first found out," she said with a teary smile.
"What are friends for?" Lena sat back then looked down as her phone buzzed. "Oh, crap. I forgot have a meeting in ten minutes. I'll cancel it and we can have lunch and talk about this."
Kara smiled apologetically. "No, don't cancel. I talked your ear off and you didn't even get to eat, I'm sorry." As Lena was brushing away her apology Kara's phone rang. "Alex?" Lena's gaze followed her facial expressions as she said her sister's name. "Alex, what's going on? I can't understand you. Where's Maggie?...Why aren't you with her?" Kara couldn't hear her sister over the loud background noise coming from Alex's phone, and she couldn't be sure but it sounded like Alex was slurring her words. Lena saw the blood drain from Kara's face. "What do you mean she left? Alex, are you...are you drunk?!" Kara's voice raised and people in the restaurant turned to look. Lena stared down every one of them, daring them to say something until they turned away in embarrassment. "Alex, where are you?" Kara's tone was frantic. "I'll come get you. No, I'm coming. Just stay there. Stop—stop drinking, okay?" Lena's face took on a concerned expression as Kara hung up. "Shoot," the reporter muttered to herself. "What do I do...I can't just leave work, how am I supposed to go get her? I can't leave her there."
Lena tilted her head. "I have some pull with Snapper Carr. I could talk to him, get you the day off. Where's your sister?"
Kara shook her head, wringing her hands and trying to think. "You don't have to do that."
"I want to. Now where is she?" Lena's tone grew firm. She knew Kara was panicking and she stepped into the leader role easily.
"Some bar all the way across the city, I've never even heard of it. O'Grady's?" Kara was fumbling with her purse.
"O'Grady's? That's not in a great neighborhood, we should go get her."
"We? You have a meeting, you need to get back to work and I have to go get Alex—" Kara broke off as Lena plucked her phone from her hand. "What are you doing?" she said, watching Lena tap her screen a few times then hold the phone up to her ear.
"Snapper Carr? It's Lena Luthor. I'm here with my good friend Kara Danvers, she's going to need the day off and some of tomorrow. She's working on something with me. No, something personal...Yes, I'm sure she'll get a quote out of it...I'm glad to hear it, maybe I should invest more in Cat Co. in the future. Thank you." Lena hung up and held out Kara's phone. "There's that solved."
"Did you just blackmail my boss?" Kara raised her eyebrows.
"Please. In business we call it persuasive conversation. Now let's go, we can take my helicopter and I know there's a landing pad down the street from that bar."
"It'll be faster if I just go," Kara said trying to sound innocent.
"On your own? In midday traffic? Please. It's the least you could do after I just shut down Snapper for you." Lena gave her a winning smile.
Kara shut her eyes and took a deep breath. "Okay, okay fine let's go. Right now, we have to hurry." She stood up.
Lena had already pulled out her phone and was heading to the exit. "John? Can you have the helicopter ready in six minutes?"
Kara tapped her fingers rhythmically against the elevator walls. She and Lena were headed down to the ground floor of the building with the helipad on it; the entire ride there she had sat silently staring out across the open sky. Lena had tried to reassure her once or twice before accepting the fact that Kara wouldn't be able to talk until she knew her sister was safe and sitting back for the remainder of the short flight. With a high-pitched ding, the elevator stopped and the doors opened. Kara practically ran out the door with Lena struggling to keep up in her heels. She caught up with Kara just outside the door and nearly ran into the blonde who was looking left and right.
"I don't know how to get there," Kara said incredulously. "I can't believe I didn't think this through." She considered using her x-ray vision, but despite the situation she couldn't afford to do anything else that would raise Lena's suspicions. Thankfully, Lena seemed to know the way and Kara didn't question it when she pointed down the street to the right.
"It's the second left after you head this way," Lena directed her. Kara had already started running; she was beside herself with anxiety but made sure to keep a close watch on her speed. She darted across the street forcing a driver to slam on his brakes to avoid hitting her. The man honked his horn and when Kara looked over her shoulder she saw Lena had just gotten to the crosswalk. Turning back she headed straight for the door to the bar, a thick wooden fixture under a peeling, sun-bleached sign that she could barely read. "O'Grady's Pub and Grub," she mumbled to herself before coming to an abrupt stop a few feet from the handle with her hand outstretched. She stood there indecisively for so long that Lena caught up to her.
"Well? Are we going in or..." Lena looked at Kara. She couldn't read her expression, but she could see the tension in the set of her shoulders. As Kara put her arm down Lena reached out to take one of her hands between both of hers. "I know this is scary," she said in a calming voice, "but you have to do this. Alex..." She left the sentence hanging.
"I know." Steeling herself, Kara wrenched open the door and stepped inside, Lena following close behind. A few drinkers turned to face them but most of the people didn't pay them any attention. Inside the bar several sports announcers' voices blared over the different televisions set up on the walls, and it was grimy and dark. Kara immediately started looking for Alex at the bar while Lena walked through the tables and glanced at the pub-goers. Frankly, she had always felt out of place in this particular bar, but it had been a favorite stop of her old friend Sam's. As she turned down the last row of tables, she thought she saw a familiar haircut at a booth in the back. Closer investigation confirmed that it was Alex, slumped over the table, and she waved to get Kara's attention.
Kara stopped short of the table, staring at her sister. Lena could see Kara's impassivity crumbling and she put a gentle arm on her shoulder, nudging her forwards. "Alex!" Kara slid into the booth next to her sister as Lena stood awkwardly at the table like a waitress. She saw that there were several empty glasses on the table and a half-full bottle of wine, not counting the empty beer bottles that Alex had lined up along the inside wall. As she looked on, Kara tried unsuccessfully to get her sister to sit up but all she could elicit was a groan. Lena frowned for a moment before going back up to the bar.
"I'd like to pay the tab for my friend back there," she said with a smile.
"Sure thing, pretty lady." The bartender wiped his hands on a towel and printed out the paper. "It's a whopper, just warning you."
"What is it?" Lena braced herself.
"An even seventy-nine dollars without tax," the man said as he handed her the receipt.
Jesus. She must have a lot of drinking experience, Lena thought to herself. She dug her wallet out of her purse and pulled out five twenties. "Keep the change," she said as she started for the table. When she got there she saw that Kara had made very little progress. Alex had relinquished her hold on an empty beer bottle but Kara couldn't get her to say anything and was starting to come apart at the seams.
"Alex, just get up," she said a little more brusquely than she meant too. When that was met by as little of a response as everything else she'd tried, Kara looked around exasperated and noticed Lena returning to the table. "Where'd you go?"
"Oh, I just went to pay off her tab," Lena shrugged, keeping her voice down. "Figured I could save you the time."
"You didn't have to do that, I'll pay you back," Kara sighed. "If she would just get up," she said in a louder tone, directing the last two words at her sister.
"Maybe you should take a moment, go outside?" Lena suggested, noticing Kara's eyes were glistening. She slid into the booth across from Alex. "I'll try to talk to her."
Kara looked between Alex and Lena a few times before making up her mind. "Sure. Fine. I'll just—I'll just be outside. Call me if you need anything." She headed back out; once the door had closed behind her she took a deep breath before launching herself into the air. She needed to clear her head, and to do that she needed to fly.
Inside, Lena was brushing crumbs off the table and onto the floor when Alex finally spoke. "Not now, Maggie," she groaned into the crook of her elbow, keeping her head down. Without a sound Lena rested her arms on the table and watched Alex. The bar life continued around her and she listened as the announcer narrated a goal three times over before Alex raised her head and blinked a few times. "Oh. Not Maggie," she said. Fighting the urge to wrinkle her nose at the smell of alcohol, Lena shook her head.
"Not Maggie."
Alex turned away from Lena's steady gaze. "Why would my sister bring you of all people to this place?"
"I was eating lunch with her when you called." Lena's stomach growled at the thought of her missed lunch. "I flew here with her."
Alex squinted at Lena, confused. "She flew you? I thought...huh. Maybe good friends don't keep secrets." She reached for the wine bottle, almost knocking it over.
"Steady there, let's take a break," Lena grabbed the bottle and moved it out of Alex's reach. "And I flew her here, in my helicopter."
"Oh. Right." Alex shook her head and blinked slowly. "Where'd that bottle go?"
Lena held it up. "I'm cutting you off."
Alex leaned her head against her hand and blew her hair out of her face. "This isn't improving my opinion of you, you know that right?"
"It's not your opinion that matters. It's Kara's. And right now, her opinion of you isn't too great."
"What do you know about it?" Alex put her head down on the table.
"Well for one," Lena said with a hint of anger, "I know that drinking yourself into a stupor isn't really the best thing you could be doing to set an example for your younger sister. And secondly, even if she won't show it, Kara is hurting. Because of you, because of what you're doing to yourself, because of shit like this. And I think you know that too." Lena put the bottle down with a forceful thunk. "The people around you want to help you. I want to help you, and you don't even like me. But you can't just wallow in—whatever is going on, and forget that you have role in people's lives. You want to become a hermit and never speak to anyone again, fine, you can drink yourself to death far away in the mountains somewhere where no one will notice or care when you die. But you owe it to the people around you to try. Because you are hurting everyone around you, especially your sister."
As Lena finished her speech, Alex raised her chin defiantly. "You think I'm doing this on purpose?"
Lena studied Alex's hazy expression for a moment. "No. I don't think you have a choice with this. But you do have a choice to get help, or at least accept it from the people who are offering it. Having a problem doesn't make you weak, Alex, it makes you human. Doing nothing about it is what makes you weak."
Alex stared at her without saying anything for a while then inhaled. "I don't know what my sister sees in you."
Lena looked startled. "What? We're just...good friends," she said nervously.
"I know, that's what I meant...but I don't think that's what you meant," Alex said raising an eyebrow.
Lena stood up and changed the subject. "Are you going to drink all day or do you want to rejoin society?"
Putting her hand to her head Alex stood slowly, leaning on the table for support. "I have to pay."
"It's taken care of," Lena said offering her arm to Alex. Alex took it hesitantly, her coordination well below average. The moment she let go of the table, though, she started to sway and Lena wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled Alex's arm around her shoulders. "Come on. Out we go," she grunted as Alex leaned on her. Matching Alex's stumbling steps was difficult in her heels but they reached the door with no issue and another woman held it open for her. "Thanks," Lena said gratefully as she walked out.
The lady gave her a nod. "She's been here all morning. You're a good friend for coming for her," she said looking at Alex whose eyes kept closing.
Lena smiled and turned away. "It's not her I came for," she muttered under her breath. She looked around for Kara and was starting to worry when she saw her walking out from behind a dumpster. Lena noticed Kara's eyes were red but didn't say anything.
"Hey, there you are," Kara smiled as she walked up to them. "It's like The Walking Dead," she said in a lighthearted tone, taking Alex off Lena's hands. She looked at Lena. "I don't know how you did it, but thank you so much."
"What are friends for," Lena smiled back. "Come on, let's get back up to the landing pad."
"Oh, um, I—I uh, called Maggie. She's actually on her way right now to pick us up," Kara said sheepishly. "I...I needed to talk to someone."
Lena felt a twinge of disappointment but she smiled again. "Of course, I understand completely. I can wait for her with you—"
"No Maggie," Alex groaned. She shuffled her feet and almost knocked her and Kara over as her balance shifted. "I told you no."
Kara looked at Lena who was standing uncertainly in front of her. "I think I'll just stay with her, alone. If that's—if it's okay with you."
"Why wouldn't it be?" Lena turned to go, hiding her hurt expression from Kara.
"I'm so sorry, Lena. I drag you all the way out here and I didn't even have lunch with you. I'll make it up to you, I promise. It's not your fault, this is all me."
Lena looked over her shoulder. "Kara, don't worry about it. I'm glad I could help, just text me when you're free." She walked away feeling strangely hollow.
Kara waited until she was out of sight then picked Alex up easily. Alex had been starting to fall asleep but as Kara lifted her off her feet she jerked awake. "Ugh, I'm gonna hurl." She tried to get out of Kara's arms but was too drunk to fight her sister.
"No you're not," Kara said decisively. "You're just going to have to wait. You'll be fine," she reassured her sister.
"Why'd you call Maggie?" Alex tried to look at Kara but the sun was shining into her eyes and she buried her face in her sister's shoulder. "I told you no," she said again.
Kara adjusted her sister's position. "I didn't actually call her. I just needed Lena to leave."
"I thought you liked Lena," Alex said confused.
"What? No, no I don't. I mean we're friends. I—yeah I like her as—as a friend. She's a great friend, she came all the way out here with me to find you!" Kara rambled as she pulled off her glasses.
"That's what I meant. Friends. But that's funny, cause Lena said the same thing to me." Alex smiled and closed her eyes.
Kara cleared her throat. "Anyways, let's get you home." She walked Alex out of view of the bar and took off, heading for Alex's apartment. The whole way there she thought about what Alex had said about Lena, wondering what she could have said to get her sister to stand up.