"Lena?"

Lena was frozen in place, rooted to the spot where she stood. Had she imagined it? Was Kara awake?

"…where am I?"

She definitely hadn't imagined that. Whirling around, Lena saw Kara slowly pushing herself up into a sitting position with her good arm, looking up at the lamp above her with her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Lena could tell by the way her movements were beginning to pick up urgency that she was starting to panic about not knowing where she was. In a moment, the youngest Luthor had returned to her chair at Kara's side and had gently placed her hand on Kara's good shoulder to calm her down and guide her into a more relaxed position.

"You're at the DEO," Lena explained. "You're safe, Eliza got the bullet out."

"DEO?" Kara asked, clearly confused. "How am I here? How are you here? Am I dreaming?"

"No," Lena reassured her, her voice soft, "you aren't dreaming. Your adopted parents brought us here. Alex is here, too, but she just left to use the bathroom. You… saved my life."

Kara's eyes widened as her memories came flooding back. She remembered vaguely when she'd busted into the lab and knocked out Gemma, as if she were a witness observing the event from outside her own body. Looking to Lena with her eyes wide, Kara asked in a small voice, "So… you know?"

"How could I not?" Lena shot back, her voice hardening. "It's not every day your friend comes flying through a wall and lives to tell the tale. Of course, that's not an everyday thing when that friend is human." She stopped the onslaught of angry words that threatened to follow when she saw Kara visibly flinch at the hostility in her tone. The blonde looked down and away from Lena, not wanting to meet her gaze. Lena's heart clenched.

"Look, I'm sorry," she said, all of the anger dissipating from her tone. Kara glanced up, a glimmer of hope in her eyes. "I'm… well, I won't lie to you, I'm mad, and not because you're an alien, but because you weren't honest with me. But this is something we can talk about another time. For now, I just want you to know that I'm here for you, Kara, and the most important thing to me right now is your recovery. I know Gemma tried to kill you, and yet you still managed to get to me in time. So, yeah, I might be upset with you, but I also owe you my life, and you're still my best friend."

"So… we're okay?" Kara asked hesitantly.

Lena nodded, giving her a small smile. "We can work through this."

"You're awake!" Alex shouted as she ran into the room, leaping toward Kara and smothering her in a hug. Lena looked like she was about to tell Alex to take it easy when she saw the look of pain on Kara's face, but she was silenced by the look Kara gave her that begged her to let Alex have that moment. Lifting her arm that wasn't bandaged, Kara wrapped it around Alex's torso in a small hug.

Alex was followed by the much calmer presence of Eliza, who began checking Kara's vitals and making sure everything was working properly now that she was awake. "Well, you seem to be right on track, Kara," Eliza commented. "All of your bruises and minor injuries have healed, but it's going to take that gunshot wound a little longer and it will take some time to build back up to your full strength. You're still healing much more quickly than a human would, so if you were to go back to school now, you'd be alright and your recovery would only take a few days. But, alternatively, you can stay here overnight and the yellow sun lamp should restore you to full capacity."

"Wait, what happened to Gemma and Andrea?" Kara asked suddenly, looking alert. "Did we just leave them at school?"

"Lex and Maggie are covering it," Alex explained, having released Kara from the hug. She was now standing next to Kara, hovering in a protective manner, as though the fear that Kara was in danger hadn't completely left her yet. "We left them to make sure that Gemma didn't get away. Lex is coming up with a cover story so they won't think the destruction had anything to do with you. I think, this time, the Coopers are finally going to get what's coming to them."

"We have to go back," Kara announced, swinging her feet to the side and jumping to a standing position, although it didn't go quite as planned and she found herself swaying for a moment as she steadied herself with her good hand.

"Whoa, Kara, maybe you should stay here overnight like Eliza suggested," Lena offered gently. "You just went through a serious ordeal, and didn't you hear Alex? Maggie and Lex have everything under control."

Alex nodded in agreement. "Yeah, what's the rush? No offense, Kara, but you're not going to be much help to anyone when you're still recovering and don't have any powers."

Kara shook her head. "Gemma isn't even close to a match for Lex and Maggie. If she regained consciousness and realized what was going on… we have to go back. I should've stopped her right then and there." Seeming to trust herself to take another step, Kara let go of the edge of the table that she was holding onto and propelled herself toward the door. She was not, however, prepared for how weak her muscles felt, and after a couple of steps, her knees started to buckle. Lena remembered how Kara had looked just before collapsing in the lab, and this was no different. With surprisingly quick reflexes, Lena had reached Kara's side and had one arm wrapped around the blonde's torso, the other holding onto her uninjured arm as the Kryptonian leaned against her for support.

"You don't know Lex," Lena said. "I know I always say I can take care of myself, but I can assure you that even if Gemma possessed all of the abilities you do, Lex would still be a match for her. She's not getting away, and the rest of our friends are going to be okay."

Kara looked at Lena uncertainly, but then she gave her a small nod. "I believe you. But I still want to go back," she added, earning an irritated look from Alex and a worried one from Lena. "I just want to be sure everything worked out. This was my problem to deal with, and I have to see it solved."

"I understand," Lena responded. Looking at Alex and Eliza, she went on, "As long as Eliza says the coast is relatively clear, we can make sure Kara's recovery goes smoothly. Alex, I know you want what's best for her, but I don't think keeping her from her friends and the opportunity to heal like a human would will help her adjustment here. Besides, if anyone has even the slightest inkling that Kara is an alien, they won't when they see her making an ordinary recovery from an injury."

"That is true," Eliza said, nodding. "I believe making a full recovery under the sun lamp would be the wisest decision medically, but I also feel that the coast is clear enough and that it would help with the overall social adjustment. So, Kara, if you wish to go back to school, provided you let your sister and your friends help you and don't try to go running off when you aren't strong enough to do so," she gave the blonde a pointed look, "I'm willing to take you all back to school now. We can ensure that Miss Cooper and Miss Rojas have been dealt with properly, but otherwise I see no reason to keep you here longer than necessary. I know the DEO isn't the most comforting place to be."

Kara's face lit up excitedly and Lena felt her heart skip a beat. There was something about the way her smile spread from ear to ear and made her eyes sparkle that made Lena's heartrate increase and her skin feel flush. She let Kara lean on her as they made their way out of the DEO and headed to the car. Eliza split off to update Jeremiah, telling the girls to go on ahead of her. Lena noticed when Eliza walked away that Kara seemed to lean on her a bit more heavily, and she wondered if Kara was in more pain than she was letting on. She didn't entirely understand how Kryptonite impacted Kara, but it definitely seemed that her muscles were extremely fatigued.

"Thanks, by the way," Kara said quietly when they reached the car and she took a seat next to Lena. Alex was out of earshot, situating herself in the passenger seat since Jeremiah wouldn't be coming with them. "I know Eliza said I could leave, but I had a feeling I wasn't going to convince them by myself."

Lena gave her a small smile. "Well, it might've been a little bit selfish," she confided. "I want you to recover, of course, but I've also missed you a lot."

"I've missed you too," Kara said. "I was so worried… when we couldn't find you, and then when Gemma told me she was going to kill me because I knew too much, I thought…" she swallowed, suddenly unsure if she could continue. She didn't know how to put into words just how much Lena meant to her, and she didn't want to think about what could've happened if she hadn't gotten to Lena in time.

"Hey, I'm okay," Lena said, putting her hand on Kara's. "It's behind us now."

Kara gave her a nod and a smile, although Lena saw a glimmer of concern still lingering in her eyes. Their conversation was interrupted, however, by Eliza getting into the car and striking up small talk about how school was going aside from their attempts to be superheroes. Alex and Kara initially engaged in the conversation, Lena only really responding when Eliza asked her questions directly. After a while, Kara lapsed into silence, letting Alex naturally take over their half of the conversation as her eyes drifted to the window.

Lena watched her curiously out of the corner of her eye, trying not to feel frustrated. She wanted to know what was going on in Kara's mind, to be able to help. But it seemed that Kara was hell-bent on keeping everything bottled up and carrying the weight of the world entirely on her own. Even now, when it was clear that not being honest with Lena had been worse in the long run, Kara continued to keep her feelings under wraps.

Now that I've offered to help, there will be plenty of time to coax the whole truth out of her, Lena reassured herself. She found it a bit ironic; the Lena from a few months ago would've scoffed at the concept of trying so hard to get someone to open up to her. But everything had changed with Kara, and Lena couldn't help but feel that the effort was worth it in the exceptional case of her blonde friend.

When Eliza dropped them back off at school, she gave Alex a long bear hug before turning to give Kara an equally as long hug, but one that was much gentler. The woman planted a kiss on the top of her head before letting them head off, making her own way to the school's front office so she could confirm that action was being taken against Gemma and Andrea. It was still Saturday, but it had grown dark, and most students were getting ready for the night, so Lena, Alex, and Kara headed back toward their dorms to meet up with Maggie, Winn, Nia, and Lex before doing the same, the events of the day having drained all of them.

The group convened in Alex and Kara's room, Maggie walking up to Alex immediately to wrap her in a hug as Lex greeted Lena with a similar reaction. Maggie explained that anything taken from the fortress had been secured and was free for Kara to transport safely back to the fortress later. She also told them about how Lex had made a cover story, pinning the entire thing on Gemma and claiming that she had been capable of such things because she wasn't human. Throughout the entire discussion, Lex was silent, his mouth set in a firm line as he merely let Maggie tell the story. Lena knew that wasn't normal for him, but it seemed everyone else in the room didn't notice anything off.

When they exited, Lex spoke to Lena in a stony voice before stalking off down the hall. "I'm glad you're safe, but we have a lot to talk about tomorrow. You should get some rest, but we're on for chess tomorrow."

Lena nodded, an uncomfortable feeling in her gut that he was angry with Kara now that he'd seen her for what she was. After all, it had hit her hard when she found out the truth about Lionel, but she was close with Kara. Lex wasn't, and Lena wondered if his odd behavior was a result of him struggling to accept Kara as someone cut from the same cloth as Superman. She still had her own misgivings, but something about Lex's tense movements and hardened expression made her concerned about just what he had in mind.

She was shaken from her thoughts by the sound of the door opening and closing behind her. Turning, she found Kara standing there. She had changed into pajamas, and now that she was standing before Lena in an ordinary situation, the Luthor was painfully aware of how worse for wear the other girl looked. Nonetheless, Kara cracked a small smile at her.

"You should be getting some sleep," Lena said. "You need to rest."

"You do too," Kara pointed out. "Besides," she added, averting her gaze, and Lena saw a bit of a frown cross her face, "I'm guessing I'm going to have some trouble sleeping. Anyways, I just wanted to come out and say goodnight to you, and also make sure you're, you know, really okay. Are you going to be able to sleep well tonight?"

Lena couldn't say she was surprised that Kara was checking on her rather than the other way around. It was just like the younger Danvers to put everyone else first, even when she was suffering. Giving her a reassuring smile, Lena nodded.

"It's going to be the best night's sleep I've had in a while. I've really missed my own bed. And I'll be fine; a few days of eating and sleeping well while I get back into a typical routine will have me back to normal in no time. You, on the other hand, need to be more worried about you."

Kara nodded, hesitating. Lena could feel a tension in the air, as if the blonde wanted to say something but couldn't quite bring herself to. Finally, she just gave Lena another confirmatory nod and said, "Okay, well, goodnight then."

"Goodnight, Kara," Lena said softly as the other girl headed back into her room. She then turned and went to take a shower in a clean bathroom, change into comfortable pajamas, and sleep in her own bed. Having spent a week in Gemma's lab certainly made her appreciate the simple pleasures of her ordinary life at school more than she had before.

Lena found that she spent longer in the shower than she'd anticipated, relishing in the hot water washing away the grungy feeling being in a cell had given her. She finished getting ready for the night in the bathroom before leaving to head back to her room. As she was going to open the door, however, she thought she heard someone call her name. Confused, she looked over her shoulder. She heard something else then, but she didn't know whether it was coming from the same source. It sounded like… sobbing.

Quietly making her way down the hall, Lena hesitated when she realized that it was coming from Kara and Alex's room. Standing closer to their door, she realized that it definitely sounded like Kara. Instinctively, her hand flew into a fist, ready to knock gently so that she could go in and help, but then she paused, her hand hovering outside of the door instead. All day, she'd been with Kara, worried about Kara. The pressure of the circumstances had made her set her feelings aside for the wellbeing of a friend. She hadn't had the time to dwell on her own thoughts or feelings. But now…

Lena felt a bit sick to her stomach. When she thought about who she was going to comfort, she found that she was also thinking about what she was going to comfort, and the reason that was something she had to adjust to at all was because Kara had lied to her for the entire duration of their friendship. Even once it was apparent that Lena knew, Kara continued to keep herself hidden behind a wall, blocking Lena out from what could be the most important parts of her life.

You know what, no, she thought. She has Alex. I shouldn't have to fight for her to be my friend. If she really sees me as her friend, she'll make the choice to talk to me about whatever's happening tonight. I'm tired of trying to figure her out.

Turning her back on the door and trying to ignore the gnawing feeling of guilt and the pain in her chest, Lena forced herself to walk away. Every part of her ached to go back, because as the brief intrusive thought that Lena swatted aside like a wasp suggested, she loved Kara. No, she corrected, I care about her a lot. As a friend. Nonetheless, if Kara was crying over Lena now, maybe it meant she felt a sliver of the pain Lena felt over being so blatantly lied to. That was the thought that fueled her as she continued down the hall, the sobs growing softer and softer until the Luthor was in her room, with the door closed, and finally, it was silent.

…

Kara had changed into pajamas, going straight to bed upon urges from Alex that she ought to get some rest and deal with everything in the morning. It wasn't a bad idea; the next day would be a Sunday, and there would be plenty of time to recover and talk with Lena after a good night's sleep. She expected it to be difficult to fall asleep, but to her relief, her eyes felt heavy as soon as her head hit the pillow, and it was only a matter of minutes before she was out like a light.

The wind whistled past her face. It was dark out this time, but Kara was once again barreling through the sky toward campus, worry for Lena coursing through her veins. It felt like she wouldn't make it, as though at any point, the last reserves of her strength would be sapped and she'd drop like a stone out of the sky. But she couldn't; she had to keep going.

As the campus buildings appeared in her vision, she honed in, desperately trying to pinpoint any sign of Lena. Once again, a scream echoed in her ears, distant and so quiet she almost thought she'd imagined it. It had to be her. Angling her body toward the sound, Kara flew with incredible force at the earth. It gave way beneath her much more easily than she expected, as if she were falling through clouds.

Kara heard a gunshot just as she collided with another person. Wait. Did the gunshot come before the collision? Staggering to her feet among the rubble, she scanned the room around her. Gemma had been knocked under the falling debris. Alex and Maggie were fine, a little shaken, but getting to their feet. Lex was slowly, tentatively making his way out from under a table. Her eyes flew to Lena.

"Lena?" she whispered.

The Luthor was standing completely still, hunched over slightly as though she was cradling something close to her stomach. Her eyes were wide, her mouth slightly agape. Kara had never seen her look so pale. Her green eyes didn't move for a moment as they stared blankly into the spot where the wall had once stood, and Kara slowly took a step forward. As she moved, the Luthor's eyes flicked up to meet hers, and as she did so, she coughed and spluttered as blood erupted from her mouth. Kara's pace sped up as Lena's hands gently fell from their place in front of her stomach, revealing a blossoming bloodstain in the center of her stomach.

"Lena, no," Kara said adamantly as she gently took Lena's shoulders, helping guide her to the floor as her knees crumpled beneath her. Each breath seemed like a battle as Lena's eyes searched Kara's face as though looking for some sort of answer, some reassurance that help was coming. Kara didn't know how to tell her she was the only help that would be coming in time. She was the saving grace. And she had failed. Even if Kara could fly at full speed with Lena to a hospital, which thanks to the Kryptonite was unlikely, the wound wouldn't be survivable.

Kara knew all of this. Perhaps that's why she decided to cherish the few last minutes she had, despite her mind's adamant denial that Lena was going to die. She held the Luthor's head in her lap, unaware of the tears coursing from her eyes until she saw a couple of them land in Lena's hair.

"It's- it's okay," she mumbled, unsure of whether she was trying to console Lena or herself more. "You're going to be okay, Lena. I didn't fly all this way to… I didn't… you can't…"

"Kara," Lena breathed out between ragged gasps. Alex was on the phone now, moving toward Kara. Kara felt a false sense of hope surge through her.

"Save your energy," Kara begged. "You can talk to me later, just focus on breathing. Help is coming. I promise."

"Kara…" Lena said again, seeming to ignore Kara's desperate pleading. "I'm not going to make it…"

"Stop, Lena," Kara begged, her voice sounding more like a pathetic keening now. "Don't say that."

"Listen to me," Lena demanded, and Kara fell silent when she saw the urgent look in Lena's eyes. "I can't… go without telling you… I…"

Her voice trailed off. With the next breath she released, her body deflated like a balloon, and it didn't inflate again. Her head lolled to one side, and a glassy sheen appeared over her eyes as they unfocused for the final time. Kara was silent for a moment, holding her breath, waiting. That couldn't be it. Lena hadn't finished her sentence. The moments seemed to drag on, and with each passing minute, Lena's body grew colder, as though her spirit were distancing itself from her.

"Lena?" Kara urged, but she knew in her heart that her friend was gone. "Lena?" her voice grew more hysterical. "You can't go, Lena. You can't; I love you. Lena." She gently shook her shoulders, like she was expecting her to wake back up at any minute.

"Lena, please," she begged, the hysteria growing until she couldn't bear the pain in her chest and her words were being ripped from her in horrific shrieks. She kept yelling Lena's name, the only thing her mind could focus on. As she let out one last scream, she felt a jolt.

"LENA!" Kara shrieked in a voice that sounded entirely separate from her own, bolting upright in bed. Alex jumped, too, although she was still awake, thumbing through the pages of a book with her bedside light on. Kara had only been a sleep for a short amount of time, but the dream had felt like an eternity. Her scream immediately melted into violent sobs, not unlike those of a night terror. The older Danvers quickly realized that whatever nightmare Kara had had about Lena was the same kind she'd had in the past about Krypton.

Alex quickly shut her book and jumped out of bed, making her way over to Kara's bed and hopping up to sit next to her. Hesitantly, she reached her hands out, waiting to see if Kara would react. There had been times in the past where she'd been too eager to help and had tried to touch Kara immediately, and when she'd had particularly bad nightmares, Kara would often fight back in instinctive self-defense. But this time, as Alex opened her arms, Kara willingly crawled into them. The older girl wrapped her in a soothing embrace, rubbing her back in gentle circular motions with one hand and softly combing through Kara's hair with the other.

"You're okay, and so is Lena," Alex murmured. "Gemma is taken care of. There's nothing to be afraid about anymore."

"What if… something else happens," Kara choked out, "and I can't save her?"

"Don't worry about that right now," Alex chastised, though it sounded more like a suggestion than a command. "There's no point in worrying about what could happen, because a lot of things could happen all the time no matter who or where you are. Right now, what matters is that you're safe, Lena's safe, and the biggest threat is gone."

Kara nodded, resting her head on Alex's shoulder and listening to the older girl's rhythmic breathing to steady her own. Closing her eyes and relishing in Alex's warmth, Kara found herself drifting off to sleep, despite having an uncomfortable feeling in the pit of her stomach. Something told her the biggest threat might still be yet to come. But, regardless, Alex was right; there was no point worrying about what could happen. Letting out a sigh and feeling the tension in her muscles finally relax, Kara succumbed to sleep.

A/N I'm sorry about the delay folks! I wasn't expecting online school to be so much work... but there's been a lot on my plate. I know originally I was updating on Wednesdays; I'm going to start shooting for Fridays! I hope to have a bit more time to write reserve chapters now that I'm caught up again though, so it should be more consistent. I definitely will do my best to not take a long gap again!

I hope this chapter comes at a good time for y'all and that things are going well for everyone! I'm excited about what I have in store for the rest of this and I'm excited for y'all to get to read it :)

Thank you for your continued support and enjoy!~

Until next time,

Nana