Kara's jaw drops so wide that she can feel her chin dragging on the floor.
Hey eyes are glued to the fancy rolls Royce pulling up in front of her shabby apartment building, a dapper looking Lena Luthor in the driver's seat.
Then Lena is climbing out to greet her, grin firmly in place at the sight of her mesmerized expression. "Hi, darling."
Kara can't even respond, completely speechless from not only the extraordinarily expensive car that Lena apparently drives when she isn't having her driver taking her place to place, but also from the sheer sex appeal that Lena manages to pull off with her slacks and shirt combo with suspenders. She's never looked hotter.
She can do little more than stare, her eyes raking up and down Lena's body, committing every little detail to memory. Based on the way Lena is sporting a smug smirk, she wore this sit for the exact purpose of making Kara's brain malfunction.
"I- oh golly." Kara stutters out.
"That good?" Lena quirks an immaculate brow.
"Better."
Lena steps into her space, hesitating for just a brief second, breaking her confident façade, then garners the courage to lean into Kara, pressing a chaste kiss to her cheek, delighting in the way it pinkens at the touch. "You look beautiful."
"Thank you." Kara feels a little underdressed next to Lena, but the blue flowy dress Alex helped her pick out is one of her best and she knows it flatters her in the best ways, clinging to her waist and leaving her arms exposed for ogling at.
Lena takes the initiative to open the passenger door for Kara, loving the way she ducks her head to hide her ever-growing blush.
Kara can't keep her eyes off of Lena as she drives, watching the way her hands wrap around the steering wheel and how she glances over at her whenever they are caught at a red light to check on her or check her out. Jury is out on which it is.
There is an air of nervousness in the car. A hesitation that can't be pinpointed to either one of them, both having their reservations about this but also yearning for it to go well, to work out in all the ways they desire.
It's distracting having Kara's wringing hands next to her while she is trying to drive so Lena takes one of them in her own, holding it between them. "Don't worry too much, this is going to be great."
Kara notes that Lena is trying to be confident for her, attempting to dispel her nerves as though she doesn't have any of her own. "I really hope so."
"Me too, besides, how bad can this date go? We're going to a museum, which we both love because we are nerds, and we already know that we can have a good time in each other's company, we just have to take this a step at a time, there's no rush." Lena squeezes the hand in her own.
"I'm really glad we are taking steps at all, it's taken years for us to get to this point, I just don't want to mess it up."
"I don't think you could mess it up if you tried, Kara."
They take the rest of the drive in silence, happy to sit in the remnants of their conversation, in the reassurance that no matter what happens, they are here for each other and will still have a good time.
It appears that Lena is taking the initiative on being a gentlewoman tonight because they second they pulled up she flew to the other side of the car to open the door for her date and offer her a hand getting out.
"Thank you, you really know how to treat a girl." Kara preens.
They don't drop their joined hands as they wander into the museum and are quickly greeted at the door by the curator. "Ah, Ms Luthor. It's so lovely to see you."
"And you, Mr Halfpenny. Thank you for extending your opening hours to allow us the opportunity to experience your exhibits, we are very much looking forward to taking a look around." Lena shakes the man's hand, not at all regretting the hefty donation she had to make to get the man to keep the museum open.
He is eager to please her, a little boisterous in his handshake, probably hoping the butter her up into becoming a repeat donator. "We have organised a little something for you inside, you will have the place to yourselves, and my staff will be waiting at the entrance for you when you're done. I also have a guide on standby in case you want a personal tour."
"No thank you, we'll be fine." Kara jumps in, wanting to spend her time with Lena, she's not just here for the paintings, as much as she is looking forward to those too.
"Of course, have a lovely time." He cheers, allowing them to go on their way.
Kara lets go of Lena's hand so she can hook their arms together instead. "There better be dinosaurs in here." Kara mutters under her breath, extraordinarily excited to head on in.
"I second that." Lena playfully leans her weight into Kara, making her sway with a little smile on her lips.
Making their way through the halls and taking in the exhibits together brings their confidence back, their playful demeanours resurfacing when they finally realize that nothing is really changing except their intimacy levels, they have pretty much already been dating and they have gotten most of the hard work out of the way already without even meaning to, they can just sit back and relax.
Lena, despite her shift in attitude, is still in her peacock phase, trying to entice Kara in and show her what she can do for her, trying to convince her that she is the right choice.
She didn't really need to pay for them to get the place to themselves, Lena knows that Kara wouldn't have even cared if they had to come at rush hour and fight their way through crowds, but it's not about that. Lena knows Kara deserves the world and if she has the power to give it to her, she's going to do it.
They find themselves slowing from a more playful joking manner as they discuss the paintings and murals to a more intimate and studious approach, spending much longer discussing each piece and leaning into each other as they do so, Lena's arm wrapped around Kara's waist, her fingertips brushing at her hipbone.
"It's beautiful." Kara's eyes drink in a magnificent art piece, one where she can see the emotion in each brush stroke, the colours blending together to create a symphony of unidentified feelings.
"You are."
Kara rolls her eyes, thinking that Lena is just messing around. That is until she looks over to her and sees the glisten in her eyes and the awe on her face. What's more is that she is gazing right at her, not looking away when she looks back, eyes completely focused and voice full of sincerity.
She has to admit, she loves this side of Lena. There's always been a level of flirtation between them, but this is different somehow. Lena is not only flirting but doing so with a level of honesty that she has never seen before. This isn't a game or a playful line to meant solely to make her blush, she'd doing it because she wants to.
There's no words she can say to explain how it makes her feel when Lena says it, no right response that can match the levels of integrity and decency, so instead Kara doesn't say anything at all, just leans closer and places a firm kiss to the corner of Lena's mouth then resting her head against the side of Lena's, moving her eyes back to the painting.
The actions make Lena's lips quirk upwards, teasing her for what is to come when they finally do share their first kiss, no doubt something that will happen later on tonight.
"How about we go head to the other side of the building, I think they might have some dinosaur bones over there?" Lena whispers, not wanting to break the perfect moment that has overtaken them.
"In a minute, I just want to stay here for another minute with you," Kara murmurs, her own hand wrapped around Lena's waist, her fingers gripping her shirt.
Lena doesn't have it in her to deny Kara's request but definitely doesn't when she notices that she isn't even looking at any of the exhibits, she's standing there with her eyes closed as she's tucked away into Lena's embrace. It makes Lena's heart rate increase, not because of nerves or anything negative but because it makes her heart feel so full.
After a couple of minutes they do move on, still entwined with each other and easily falling in step as not to part. "I'm so excited for this, I hope they have some good bones." Kara grins, her excitement rubbing off on Lena.
"I hope they have a full skeleton set up, that would be so cool."
"Holy crap, I didn't even think of that, I really hope so."
Their steps pick up in pace when they get closer, both impatient to get there and see what they have.
It seems that their wish has come true, standing tall in the centre of the room is the ginormous skeleton of a triceratops.
"It's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen in my life." Kara gasps.
Lena nods along for a second before freezing. "Should I take offence at that?"
"Probably. Look at how many bones they have been able to preserve, this has to be one of the most complete skeletons they have found. Oh Rao, it's magnificent." She can't help but actually tear up at the sight.
All the while Lena is standing at her side trying not to laugh at how emotional Kara is getting at looking at the dinosaur.
"Alright, alright. I'm not losing my date to a dinosaur so let's take a look around the rest of the stuff then we can come back later if we still have time." Lena guides her away with the firm hand on her waist, not missing the way Kara cranes her neck to take one last gander at it over her shoulder.
What they aren't expecting when they turn the corner is the little table set up in the middle of the fossil exhibits, a bottle of wine resting in an ice bucket just off to the side while the room is cast in the glowing light from a few fake candles.
With a disbelieving shake of her head Lena heads right for the ice bucket, checking out the wine. "It looks like Mr Halfpenny has outdone himself."
Kara moves to look over her shoulder at the wine, humming with excitement. "He's a man with taste, that's good wine and he chose the dinosaur exhibit to set it up. Shall we sit and have a glass?"
"It would be rude not to." Lena pulls a chair out of Kara, gesturing for her to take a seat before taking her own.
"You're being very gentlewomanly tonight," Kara observes, her eyes tracking the attractive way Lena's fingers grip each wine glass as she fills them up before handing one over to her.
Lena meets her eyes, smirking a little bit. "It's not everyday I have a pretty woman to impress, and I've always been an overachiever."
It's easy to tell that she means it as a joke but something about it doesn't sit right with Kara. "You don't have to do all of this, you know? I would have enjoyed every bit of this date no matter what we did or how you acted. You don't have to impress me because I'm kind of already sold on you."
Their hands entwine across the table. "I like being able to do this for you, it makes me feel better and you deserve it all, Kara Danvers."
"So do you, so at some point you're going to have to let me impress you to."
"Keep wearing dresses like that and your job is done, you look hot." Lena leans back into her chair with a smug grin.
"Flatterer." Kara giggles. "But I am being serious about having my turn."
Lena nods, taking a swig of her wine. "Well, if this date is going as well as I think it is, it looks like we'll be having many more, so you'll get your chance – when I'm done making you fall in love with me that is."
"Well, it's certainly working." The words are hesitant, Kara not sure how much she can say without scaring her off.
"Then I have no reason to stop."
They stumble into Lena's penthouse together, hands wandering, and lips joined in a fiery kiss that has been building up for literal years. The pressure lifting off their shoulders since now they don't have to hide their feelings, everything laid bare and out in open to be cherished and coddled.
"My god, Kara." Lena breathes out when her fingers brush against the tight abs beneath her dress. "You're so hot."
"Speak for yourself." Kara gasps, fingers working tirelessly to unbutton the shirt and slip the suspenders off her shoulders.
They stumble to the bedroom only pausing when they topple onto the mattress. Lena parts their lips. "Is this too fast?"
"Not fast enough. We have, like, five years to catch up on."
"You better make yourself comfortable then, darling. This is going to be a long night."