Lena's return was lackadaisical when she came back into to the lab. The slow, pondering steps were as if she was in deep thought.
"Is everything okay?" Sam asked, she had rarely seen Lena this distracted.
"Yes," Lena said, still not quite with her. She snapped out of this mild trance and her eyes widened. "Sorry, I just need to make one more quick call," she said. Sam nodded and glanced around the overly familiar room. The last couple of months had been spent in two places. Superman's back room and labs just like this one. Though she thought she had grown tired of it all, she had kept putting off chances to leave. That would finally change as today was the day she had finally decided to return to the real world, with Ruby transferring back to her school in National City and excited to live with her again, there was no turning back.
She was sat on a stool near one of the several workbenches. The lab had a shine to it, save for the beaten area where the upper limits of her new arm were tested. There had been a lot of lifting heavy objects and smashing hard surfaces while Lena recorded every outcome, checking and double checking everything she could. She had been assured by Lena that everything was in order, she found herself insisting on doing everything again and again as an excuse to put things off just that little bit longer.
"I need you to go to Metropolis, now," Lena had not bothered to step outside for this call and her voice echoed around the large space. Sam did her best not to eavesdrop, but even now she was still getting used to her heightened senses.
"Sure thing." A male voice she did not recognise was on the other side of the call. There was a pause.
"You're not going to ask any more questions?" Lena asked.
"I kind of assumed there'd be a follow-up," he said. Lena glanced over her shoulder.
"I'll send you the details shortly, just get a ticket to somewhere central," she said.
"I'm supposed to be the vague one. Is someone listening? Tell them I said hello," he said. Lena sighed heavily, letting the silence stew. "You're not going to say hello from me, are you?"
"You know I'm not," she said. He tutted.
"Shame," He said.
Lena exhaled from her nose sharply.
"Drain," she said.
"I'll get there ASAP," he said, his jaunty tone had fallen off instantly. Lena pulled the phone away from her ear and she strode back from the corner with a concerned look on her face.
"What's up?" Sam asked.
"Personal business. Don't worry about it," Lena said. It was understandable how Lena could act strange around her sometimes. Though she barely remembered anything when Reign had been in control, one image that had stuck with her was her hand around Lena's neck. Despite this, Lena had been supportive the entire time and Ruby had taken a real shine to her. Lena sank an extensive amount of work in helping their recovery, both physically and mentally. She decided not to pry, it was the least she could do.
Lena pulled up a stool next to her.
"Now, I know the first day back is going to be daunting. I've made sure everything's been cleared, your constant change in look during… well…" Lena swallowed hard and gave herself a moment. "It's extremely unlikely you'll be recognised, and if you are, procedures are in place." Sam nodded silently, though recognition was the least of her worries. She had grown accustomed to her ghost-white skin and red hair, it was the public eye she was worried about. The bionic, black arm was incredible, but she had no doubt in her mind as to how much attention it would draw.
"And one more parting gift from the lab." Lena said, picking out a small device from her jacket pocket and presenting it to her. It was a small leather-strapped watch with a blue and red face.
"While there's no chance of relapse, I know you're concerned for Ruby's safety. I'm hoping this will provide some peace of mind." She held the watch up to her, pointing at three buttons on the right side. "If all three are pressed at the same time, Superman and I will be notified of her location immediately. We both have devices that are linked to it for communication as well, the range is practically unlimited."
Sam smiled at her, it was a thoughtful gift. Lena had always taken her concerns seriously, even the few times it felt like she was being humoured she knew it came from a good place.
"With how much she likes Superman, she might use it just to say hi," she said. Lena laughed.
"Please stress to her that it's for emergencies only." Sam took the watch and studied its simple design. Ruby had never expressed interest in wearing one, the connection to Lena and Superman would probably change that attitude. She reminded herself to tell Ruby to keep her connection to all this secret, the last thing she needed was school kids gossiping about the peculiar developments in her private life.
Lena's smile faded as she carried on.
"As for your job, it's a bit tricky. In all honesty I replaced the C.F.O. spot quickly as I could, I didn't know how long you'd be gone and I needed someone in place to undo Prometheus' more long term damage. Keeping investors from bailing and whatnot. I'd gladly take you back into L-Corp, you'd be a fantastic asset to the company, but publicly it would look like a demotion. Same goes for saying you were fired, you'd have the severance package to work with but career-wise it could look bad for you."
She thought for a moment, she was in no mood to dive straight back into a job at all, let alone a demotion. She had cash-bought the house, the perks of being a high earner, and had savings to throw at any living expenses for a while.
"Just say I quit for personal reasons, I'm alright for money," she said. Lena furrowed her brow.
"If you're sure, I can pull some strings if you want a new job elsewhere." Sam held her hand out as the cogs in Lena's brain turned away.
"It's okay, really, I think I want some time away from work to figure out…" she gestured to herself and the prosthetic "all this, first." Lena nodded, it looked like she wanted to say more but she refrained. Instead she put some keys down on the workbench, they jangled and scratched against the surface.
"I've got your house keys here. Superman will bring Ruby and her things over from Metropolis this evening, works out late afternoon our time. I think that covers it all," Lena said. Sam slowly dragged the keys across, it was peculiar. Her sense of touch with the prosthetic seemed so real, it was the slight differences that were still noticeable. It would take time to get used to the mild detachment and odd tingles that occasionally made their way across the whole thing. Her unease was exacerbated by the mixture of excitement and fear she felt for going back to her old life. Ruby's spirits had hardly seemed to have dampened at all when she visited her at the Fortress. Even without any sign of it, the worry that Ruby would see her differently, or even fear her in this new state still lingered. Once everything was settled again, she might long for her mother before the change. Deep down she knew that was not in Ruby's nature, though her being so young there was no way of really knowing what effect it could have. She tried not to dwell on it, letting the reassurances of Clark and Lena run through her head.
"Thank you, Lena" Sam said.
"It's nothing, keys are easy enough to keep an eye on and Superman…"
"No, I mean thank you for everything. You've done so much for me and Ruby. I know what I… what Reign did to you. You'd have been well within your right to never want to see me again, let alone caring for my daughter and ensuring my safety," Sam said cutting her off.
Lena cocked her head.
"You may look the same, you may even feel what she felt. But the Sam I've come to know couldn't be further from Reign. You deserve all the love and support you've gotten, it's what's made it such a pleasure to do all this for you," she said. Sam did her best to hold back tears in the face of such kindness. She went into hug her, Lena flinched away.
"Oh… er, sorry," Sam said, having forgotten herself. Lena closed her eyes and breathed heavily.
"It's okay," Lena said, looking embarrassed. She recomposed herself and hugged Sam. It was notably uncomfortable for the both of them, though Sam appreciated the sentiment.
"I won't waste what you've done for me, you're giving me my life back, I shan't soon forget it. I can't think how I can repay you…" she said, her anxieties starting to wash away. She had taken the step forward and now was wandering why there had been any hesitance at all.
"No need for repayment, just let me keep seeing Ruby from time to time," Lena said.
"I don't think I could keep her away. Sam said. Lena smiled again. After everything she had been through it was refreshing to truly let some positivity into her life again.
"Come on, I'll escort you out and my driver can take you home," Lena started to tidy a few things away and tucked in the stool.
Sam stood up, making her way over to the exit. Lena had touched her thumb against a pad, the lights were shutting off behind her as she walked on. Each fear she had embraced falling away with each row of lights clicking off. She knew it was not the last she would see of a lab like this, for now though it was cathartic, watching the door close as the last light shut itself off.