It had taken her a few moments to gather her thoughts and a few more to pull herself together, dry off, and get dressed. After pulling on the grey sweatpants and black tank Cat had left for her, she had slowly wandered down the stairs and toward the kitchen.
She could smell something wonderful cooking away, and she suddenly felt the hunger pains she'd been ignoring. Turning into the kitchen, she breathed in deeply, but less from the aromatic smells and more from the sight.
Cat Grant was casually dressed in a pair of black shorts and an oversized dark blue t-shirt. Her hair was loosely pulled back, and her face was clean of makeup, which, as far as Kara could remember, was the first time she'd ever seen the other woman without a touch of makeup on her face. She had enough brain power left to wonder when and where Cat had washed her face, but she tossed that up to the penthouse likely having more than one bathroom and Cat being overly prepared for just about anything.
Kara slowly made her way to the massive kitchen's island and sat down on a stool on the opposite side from where Cat was quietly cutting something. "I see you found your way back down here."
The younger blonde nodded, clearing her throat. "Yes, and thank you for the clothes." She glanced down at herself, unconsciously flexing her arms. She heard Cat gasp under her breath, and, for some reason, Kara liked hearing that. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
Cat stopped cutting and carefully placed the knife on the cutting board. "I'm not sure. What do you eat? Is there some kind of Kryptonian food, or do you eat human food?"
"Uh, both?" Kara gave an apologetic smile. "There was food specific to my planet, but it's gone now. I've eaten human food since I arrived with no ill effects except that I have to eat much more than you do."
The older blonde nodded. "How much?"
"Well, a normal adult human female needs about 1200 calories for a day. I need about 3600 just to maintain, and, if I over exert like today, I really should eat about 6000 calories." She shrugged. "I basically have a hollow leg."
"And you look like that?" Cat slowly shook her head. "Amazing, and good to know. I'll need to cook more than this for it to be enough." She turned and pulled two more packages of chicken out and a rice cooker from under the island. "We're having chicken and rice. I hope that's okay?"
"That sounds great. What can I do to help?" Kara was already starting to move, but she stopped when Cat held her hand up.
"Nothing. You help me and this city all the time, Supergirl. The least I can do is cook us dinner." She began setting up the rice cooker as she spoke. "If you want to do something, tell me more about yourself."
Kara internally groaned. Of course Cat would want to know more about Supergirl. "What would you like to know?" Of course, she was going to acquiesce.
"Well, what's your favorite food?" The older blonde moved about the kitchen, seeming to pay more attention to cooking than her guest.
Kara knew better. She knew Cat was watching her and learning. She smiled brightly. "Chocolate pecan pie. It's the best food in the galaxy, and I would know." Her eyes sparkled with mirth.
Despite herself, Cat chuckled. "I bet you eat junk food a lot, don't you?" The younger woman gave a guilty shrug. Cat snorted. "It must be a Millennial thing. My assistant eats more junk food than real food, too." She shook her head. "I envy both of your metabolisms."
"You shouldn't, Cat. You look amazing." The words were out of Kara's mouth before her brain registered them. Once she realized what she'd said, she was going to apologize for stepping out of line, but the pleased look on Cat's face made her stop. In fact, Kara could see a hint of a blush, and, despite her internal warning bells going off, she let her mouth keep moving.
"I can't think of a time when you didn't look attractive, and," she was internally screaming at herself. Was she really saying these things? "It doesn't really matter what you're wearing or not… designer clothes and makeup or comfy clothes and a clean face, you are, by far, the most attractive person I have ever met, so I don't really think you need to envy my metabolism," she finished, the assertiveness in voice finally petering out as her resolve about how bad of an idea this was started to grow. She finished quietly by adding, "but I might envy you sometimes."
Cat forgot about the food. The words coming from the other woman left her stunned. Sure, she'd been flirting with Supergirl for a while now, and, yes, she had every intention of at least trying to see where this would go, but she'd never guess that the other woman would take such a bold step so quickly. She expected her to be slow and cautious about it, to be a bit mousy.
She should have known better. If she'd learned anything from watching Supergirl in action, it was that, once her mind was made up, she acted.
She gave the now wild-eyed younger woman a dazzling smile as she turned back to preparing the food. "Thank you," she demurred, not sure which way to go yet with this. Maybe another question instead of trying to push this? "You know," she began with a change in her cadence to indicate she was going to let that all go for now, "I've always wondered how you eat without accidentally breaking off fork prongs or shattering plates. Did it take you a long time to work out how to maneuver on earth?"
"It did, actually." Kara relaxed. She'd much rather talk about accidentally destroying property than keep on with the line of thinking she'd started because it ended with her doing something that would likely get her fired… if Cat knew she and her assistant were the same person. "Super strength means super accidents. Learning how to use appliances and do basic things like eat using utensils was hard at first because I had to learn to gage how much force to use. It's gotten easier over time. I mean, I don't accidentally pull car doors off cars when I open them anymore, normally, but, if I get too comfortable, I can forget." She looked away in embarrassment. "Nothing in my apartment is new or even matches. It seemed kind of pointless to buy new or matching things when I know that eventually I'll be half asleep and forget my own strength. I can't tell you how many of my dishes are scratched from a knife I put too much pressure on or how many of my coffee mugs are chipped from me accidentally hitting them with my front teeth."
She sighed heavily. It was a little thing, really, but it annoyed her. She honestly wanted to have nice things. "I even have a hard time with clothing because seams aren't meant for super strong wearers who can rip them like paper, which is why I try to buy from the discount rack." She sighed again, annoyed that she'd never know what it was like to buy a brand new anything. "Kal grew up on earth, so he eased into his powers. I wasn't so lucky, and I sometimes still have issues." She winced. "I've gone through more coffeepots and alarm clocks than I can remember."
Cat tilted her head in thought. "I would never have considered that, but it makes sense." She checked the chicken and began pulling out serving dishes. "I suppose your strength would be a factor in many of the things you do in daily life." She set two bowls down and added forks. "I guess that means sex is out of the question, then, doesn't it?"
Kara's breath slammed out of her, and she glanced up from where her eyes were on the bowls. She looked scared and slightly confused. Her hands gripped the side of the island, and she could feel it crack ever so slightly beneath her thumb, causing her to quickly release it. "What?!"
The older woman gave an almost disinterested shrug, but Kara had seen it before. It was calculated. "If you're that strong when you're not paying attention, I would guess it would be incredibly dangerous for you to completely let go." There was a disappointed note in Cat's voice. "If you can't have a partner, can you even ma…"
"I'm not having this conversation with you, Cat." Kara took in a deep breath, rolling her eyes up to try to sort out her panic from her annoyance. "If I'm ever lucky enough to have a partner, I would hope she's understanding enough to know that we would have to do some specific thing for both our safety, but that's between the two of us, and I really am going to have to draw the line there."
Cat raised an eyebrow as she served the food. "She?"
Kara huffed. "Or he. Whomever. It doesn't matter. Gender is a construct of Earth. Krypton held firmer to the belief that one was attracted to the person and not the genetic makeup of said person." She reached out for one of the bowls and shoved food into her mouth as a way of saying she was done with this conversation.
The older pursed her lips in thought. "Fair enough, Supergirl." She served herself. "How's the food."
"Really good," Kara replied around another mouthful and her eyes smiled at Cat's faux-annoyance. She swallowed happily. "I didn't know you could cook."
"I didn't know you'd ever wondered." Cat smirked, adding more food to the other woman's bowl. "I wasn't always rich and famous. I had to feed myself until I arrived."
Kara nodded, giving the older woman the point. "Thank you for… everything. Really, it's nice. I don't often have a chance to hide away from the world."
"Well, you have it now." Cat finished her food and added to her dishwasher load. "Keep the key. Come anytime. I know my son Carter would love to meet you when he's not in mortal danger."
"I like Carter. He's a good kid." Kara's eyes grew bright as she thought about the time she'd spent with him. "It's clear how smart he is. You know, I really think he'll change the world one of these days."
Cat grinned. "So do I, but I know it's my maternal bias coming out."
"Well, I can say it with no bias. There's so much intelligence there. I know he's a little shy, and I know a thing or two about being shy," the younger woman said with self-depreciation as she bobbed her head slightly, "but I think he'll eventually find his way."
The older blonde nodded. "You did."
"I… am finished." Kara held up the bowl. "Let me help put everything away before I leave."
"You're leaving?" Cat sounded as disappointed as she looked. She had honestly thought the other woman would stay.
"Well, I mean, I do have a home of my own, and I don't want to intrude…"
"It's not an intrusion if there's an open invitation. I have a guest room, Supergirl. You are welcome to use it freely whenever you'd like." Cat nodded toward the balcony. "Just remember to close and lock up next time."
"Oh, I'm sorry. I was a little sidetracked when I got here." Kara moved swiftly to help Cat, who brushed her away and finished up herself. "Besides, I have to get some work done tomorrow."
"Is that so?" Cat turned to the taller woman and crossed her arms defiantly. "Couldn't you call or text your boss and let them know you'll work on it on Monday? Tomorrow is Saturday, after all."
Kara actually snorted. "No, I don't think so." She stepped backward and around the island. "I left early today, obviously, and my boss is really great but also very precise. They like things a certain way, expect things to happen within specified time frames, and I prefer to give them what they want." She shrugged. "I like making her happy, and, also," she smiled weakly, "I like my job, so I'd rather them not think I'm a slacker."
"I really don't think that's going to happen," Cat said with a sigh, "But, if you must go, fine. Just remember that my door is always open if you ever need it or want it." She watched the younger woman head toward the stairs. "Oh, and Supergirl?" Kara turned and tilted her head in question. "The key works for the living room balcony and my bedroom balcony."
Kara nodded and promptly stumbled up the stairs, much to Cat's delight.