Five Years Later

Lena walked into the restaurant making a beeline to their usual table. The hostess smiled at her in recognition, offering a polite nod of acknowledgement. Lena returned it, taking a deep breath as she spotted Sam and Andrea in her line of sight.

She sat just as waiter arrived, taking their order. "Sorry I'm late." She turned to the waiter. "Here's what I'd like: I wand a Campari and soda, but here's how I want it. I want the Campari in a glass with ice, and the soda on the side, but only in a bottle. I don't want the soda in a glass, I want to mix it myself."

The waiter rushed to scribble her order, then promptly scurried away to fulfill it. Lena was barely listening to what her friends were talking about.

"So, I looked through his pockets, right?" Sam said.

Andrea rolled her eyes, and Lena could relate. "Sam, why do you go look through his pockets?"

"And you know what I found?"

"What?"

"They just bought a dining room table. He and his 'estranged' wife just went out and bought a $1500 dining table."

"Where?"

Sam waved her off. "The point isn't where, Andrea! The point is, he's never going to actually leave her."

Lena and Andrea shared a look. "So what else is new?" Andrea retorted. "We've been telling you this for two years."

Sam shook her head glumly. "You're right, you're right. I know you're right."

Andrea sighed, leaning over the table to take Sam's hand. "Why can't you find someone actually single? When I was single, I knew lots of nice, single men. And women! There must be someone." She motioned towards Lena with a smile. "Lena found someone!"

Sam scoffed. "Lena got the last good one, didn't she?"

Lena fiddled with the straw on her glass of water. "Jack and I broke up," she announced matter-of-factly.

"What?" was the chorus that followed.

"When did this happen?" Andrea inquired, hands moving away from Sam's to grasp Lena's.

"Monday."

Andrea looked scandalized. "And you waited three days to tell us?"

Sam had a pensive look. "You mean Jack's available?"

Andrea shot her a withering glare. "For God's sake, Sam! Don't you have any tact? Lena's obviously very upset-"

"I'm not that upset," Lena interjected. "Honestly, we've been growing apart for some time—you know how it is."

Sam looked horrified. "But... but... you were a couple! You were together. You had someone to go places with—you had a date for all national holidays."

Lena shrugged. "I just said to myself, you deserve better than this. You're 32 years old..."

"And you're not getting any younger," her friends chorused.

"I don't care about that," Lena waved them off.

Andrea sighed. "God, you're in such great shape."

Lena continued. "Well. I've had a couple of days to think about it, to get used to it, and frankly? I feel okay. More than okay. I am completely over him."

"Good," Sam quipped, fishing a Rolodex out of her purse and opening it with flamboyance, quickly flipping through the wealth of cards stored.

Andrea smacked her arm. "Really, Sam!"

Sam merely shrugged. "How else do you think you do it?" She retorted, flipping through and finally pulling out a card. "I've got the perfect guy."

"Then you go out with him," Lena quipped.

"I've got someone."

"You've got someone who's already got another someone." Andrea pointed out with a glare. Sam ignored her, waving the card in Lena's face.

"I don't happen to find him particularly attractive, but you might. You don't have a problem with chins like me."

"Sam, I'm not ready yet," Lena said with a sigh.

Sam leaned back. "I thought you just said you were over Jack."

"I am," Lena said firmly. "But I am in a... mourning period, let's say." There was a pause, and Lena stretched to see the card. "Who is it?"

Sam smiled widely. "James Olsen."

Lena groaned; Andrea rolled her eyes. "You fixed me up with him six years ago! That was disastrous!"

"Oh, okay, okay." She put the card back, flipping through and picking another one out. "Maggie Sawyer?"

"She's been married for over a year," Andrea supplied flatly.

"Really. Married, huh?" Sam tutted and dog-eared the card, relegating it to the back of the Rolodex, which was filling up with other dog-eared cards. She flipped through once more. "Wait, wait, I got one, I got one..."

Lena raised a hand to stop her. "Sam, there's no point in going out with someone I might really like if I met them at the right time, but who right now has no chance of being anything more than a transitional person."

"So you need a rebound fuck." Andrea quipped, and Lena glared.

"Okay, okay," Sam said, clicking the Rolodex shut. "But don't wait too long, you hear me? Do you remember Mike? His wife left him, and everyone said 'give him time, give him time, don't move in too fast,' and six months later he was dead."

Lena looked at her friend, bewildered. "What are you saying? I should just marry someone right away in case they're about to die?"

"At least you can say you were married," Andrea laughed.

Sam rolled her eyes. "I'm saying the right person for you might be out there right now, and if you don't grab them, someone else will, and you'll have to spend the rest of your damn life knowing that someone else is married to your person."

Lena wanted to bang her head on the table. Andrea smacked Sam's arm again.

The stadium was packed and noisy, with a massive wave making its way across the stands. The National City Charmers were winning, but not by much, and the excitement in the air was palpable. Kara made a show of rising and falling with her sister as the waves rolled by them, but slumped despondently back to her seat when it was done.

"Jeez. When did this happen?" Alex asked, eyes still on the game.

"Friday." Kara sighed. "Kate comes home and she just says 'I don't know if I want to be married to you anymore.' You know, like it's not me, like the problem is with the institution of marriage or something, like it's just something she's been thinking about in a casual way. I'm calm. I say 'why don't we think about it, take some time, not rush into anything,' she says OK."

She paused to let Alex yell at the umpire for a moment. "Next day she says she thought about it, wants a trial separation. She just wants to try it, she says. We can still date, she tells me, like that's supposed to make anything better. Jeez, I got married so I could stop dating, so I really don't see how 'we can still date' is a big incentive—I do not see the appeal, because as far as I'm concerned, the last thing you want to do is go back to dating your wife, who's supposed to love you."

Alex yelled again. "And I tell her that, which is when it crosses my mind that maybe... maybe she doesn't love me anymore, and I ask her exactly that, and you know what she says? She says 'I don't know if I ever loved you.'"

"Oof," Alex groaned sympathetically, just as another wave rolled through their section. They rose and fell with it, Kara slumping on her seat again. "Ooh, I'm sorry, Kara. That's harsh."

Kara shrugged. "You don't bounce back from that sort of thing—that's just particularly harsh."

"Thanks, Alex." They paused, with Alex keeping her eyes on the game, turning to Kara every now and again.

Kara heaved a forlorn sigh before continuing. "Then she says, she just found out that someone in her office is going to South America, and Kate's going to sublet her colleague's apartment. I couldn't believe it—and I told her that. Just as I say it, the doorbell rings, and my words are still kinda hanging in the air in a little balloon connected to my mouth."

"Like a cartoon," Alex supplied.

"Yeah, like a cartoon. And then I get to the door—you're not going to believe it—and there are movers there. I get suspicious, right? I mean, the timing—so I ask her, when did she book the movers. She doesn't answer. So, I come up to them and ask 'hey, when did this lady book you for this?', and they're standing right there, three huge dudes, one full of tattoos and wearing a T-shirt that says 'Don't fuck with Superman'. And at that point I'm getting angry, so I ask again 'Kate, when did you make this arrangement?' and you know what she says?"

"What?"

"She said she booked them a week ago. A week! I tell her, 'Kate, you've known this for a whole damn week and you didn't tell me?' and you know what she says—what's the real kicker here?"

"What did she say?"

"She said she didn't want to ruin my birthday."

Alex grimaced as another wave came through, sparing Kara a sympathetic glance as they rose and fell once more.

"Shit, you're saying Mr. Superman knew you were getting a divorce a whole-ass week before you did?"

Kara nodded dejectedly. "Mr. Superman knew."

"Jesus."

"I haven't even told you the worst part."

Alex whirled toward her, an incredulous glint in her eyes. "There's worse? What could be worse than Mr. Superman knowing about your divorce before you?"

Kara sighed. "It's all a lie. She's in love with someone else, some attorney. She moved in with her."

Alex's eyes widened. "How on earth did you find out?"

"I followed her and stood outside the building."

Kara felt her sister's hand on her shoulder, squeezing lightly. "Kara, that's fucking humiliating."

"Ha. Tell me. Standing on the street, the ultimate schmuck." She paused, looking to the pitch, not really seeing it. "I knew this would happen. The whole time I knew, even though we were happy, it was all a fucking illusion and one day she'd kick the shit out of me."

"Kara," Alex said, finally turning in her seat to face her sister. "Marriages don't break up on account of infidelity, I don't think. It's just... a symptom. A symptom that something else is wrong."

Kara glared as yet another wave came rolling by. She stood, still glaring. "Oh, yeah? Well, Alex, that symptom is fucking my wife!"

Alex shrugged, cringing a little. "At least you got the apartment." Kara gave her a blank stare. "What?"

"So... I just happened to see his American Express bill."

Lena stuck her head out of the Personal Relationships section to glare at her friend. "Sam," she began, already exasperated. "What do you mean, you just happened to see it?"

Sam shrugged, picking a random book from Self-Help. "Well, he was shaving, and there it was, just lying there. In his briefcase."

Lena pinched the bridge of her nose. "What if he came out and saw you digging through his damn briefcase?"

"You're missing the point," Sam waved her off. "I'm telling you what I found."

"Well, what did you find?"

Sam looked dejected. "He spent $200 on a nightgown for his wife." A beat passed. "I don't think he's ever going to actually leave her!"

Lena's sympathy had long run dry on this subject. "No one thinks he's ever going to leave her, honey."

Sam sighed, jamming the book back into the shelf angrily. "You're right, you're right. I know you're right." She suddenly turned, her attention catching on something happening behind Lena. "Someone's staring at you."

Lena froze. "What?"

"Someone's staring at you in Personal Growth."

Lena discreetly glanced over her shoulder; her gaze met the blue, inquisitive eyes of Kara Danvers. Her hair was shorter now, tumbling just above her shoulders in waves. She wore glasses, and a tan pantsuit that looked rather smart.

She snorted at Sam. "I know her. You'd like her—she's married," she snipped.

Sam whacked her with a magazine. "Who is she?"

"Kara Danvers. Last I heard she was a writer for CatCo Magazine."

Sam looked over, failing atrociously at being discreet. "She's very cute."

Lena scowled. "You think she's cute?"

"How do you know she's married?"

"Because the last time I saw her, she was getting married."

"And how long ago was that?"

Lena stopped to think.

"Five, six years ago? Why?"

Sam pretended to be fascinated by a rotating holiday card display. "So..." she drawled, spinning it slowly. "She might not be married anymore."

"She's also extremely obnoxious," Lena retorted, nipping that line of thought in the bud. She was not successful, because Sam merely shrugged, smirking widely.

"I don't know, this seems awfully like one of those movie meet-cutes. When one thinks the other isn't all that great..."

"I did say extremely obnoxious, didn't you hear me?"

"But then they fall madly in love."

"Cut the crap, Sam. She also never remembers me."

"Lena Luthor!"

Lena had to whirl to face Kara—she had not noticed her approach, and now the blonde was just a few inches away. "Hi, Kara."

"I thought it was you." Kara smiled.

Lena smiled back politely. "Indeed, it is. This is..." she motioned towards Sam, only to find the rotating display creaking away as it spun, and just a flash of Sam's red shirt as she dashed outside. Lena frowned. "That was Sam, my friend."

Kara's smile didn't waver, but she stood awkwardly, shifting her weight on her feet. Lena had forgotten how tall she was, and it seemed like Kara was also refamiliarizing herself with her face.

The blonde popped her lips. "So. How ya doing?"

Lena crossed her arms. "Fine."

"Oh, fine. How's Jack?"

"I hear he's fine."

Kara's brow rose. "You hear he's fine? Are you not with Jack anymore?"

Lena shook her head. "No, we just broke up. A couple of weeks ago."

"Oh, golly, that's too bad," Kara said, awkwardly rubbing the back of her head.

"Yeah, well, you know. Life." There was a pause. "What about you? How have you been?"

"Oh, fine, fine. Y'know. Fine."

"How's... how's married life?"

Kara gave a little laugh, but Lena noticed her smile did not quite reach her eyes anymore. "Well, that isn't going so well. I'm, uh. I'm getting a divorce."

"Oh." There was another pause, and Lena found herself lightly patting Kara's arm. "I'm really sorry. When did it happen?"

"A couple of weeks ago."

"That's right when Jack and I broke up." Lena mused, and Kara chuckled.

"Isn't that amazing?"

"Not really. Everybody in National City breaks up this time of year."

"Maybe it's the pressure of the holidays," Kara said with a nod.

"Yeah..." Lena eyed her carefully. "Do you mind me asking what happened?"

Kara's shoulders seemed to sag. "She left me. She fell in love with an attorney—a tax attorney at that."

Lena smiled. "An 'Agnes'," she quipped.

"An Agnes?" Recognition dawned in Kara's sad blue eyes. "Oh, yeah, right! An Agnes. Well, Sophie, actually, but it's the same."

"I really am sorry, Kara."

Kara shrugged, eyes to the ceiling. "Oh, well. What can you do?" She paused. "How about you and Jack? What happened with you guys?"

Somehow, Lena found herself sitting opposite Kara in the café adjacent to the bookstore. They both ordered cappuccinos, and Kara was nibbling at a massive, jam-filled pastry. Lena was thoroughly surprised at how easily conversation flowed between them—it was nothing like the drive to National City, and nothing like that hellish plane ride they had shared a few years ago.

Her spoon clinked against the saucer of her cup as she fiddled with it; Kara was listening intently as she talked—it felt nice to have someone's undivided attention.

"When Jack and I started dating, we wanted exactly the same things. We wanted to live together, but we weren't going to get married, because every time someone we knew got married, it basically ruined their relationship. They never had sex again. And it's true, it's one of those secrets no one tells you. I would sit around with my friends who have kids, y'know, and all they would do is complain about how they never did it anymore. Actually, they weren't even complaining—they just said so matter-of-factly. They were up all night, exhausted all the time, the kids just took every sexual impulse they had out of them, and Jack and I used to talk about it. We said we were so lucky to have this wonderful relationship, where we can have sex on the kitchen floor and not worry about a kid walking in; we can fly off to Rome on a moment's notice."

She paused, knowing she was rambling, but Kara still listening with rapt attention, munching quietly on her pastry.

"Anyway, I promised to take my friend's kid—Ruby, she's great—I promised to take her to the circus. We were in the car playing 'I Spy'-you know, 'I spy a lamppost, I spy a mailbox'-and she looked out the window and there was this couple with two little kids, and one of them was on her mom's shoulders, and Ruby just said 'I spy a family', and I started to cry. I just... I just cried. And when I got home, I said 'Jack, the thing is, we never do fly off to Rome on a moment's notice'."

Kara nodded in understanding; mouth still full. "And the kitchen floor?" She asked.

Lena shook her head. "Not even once." She let out a little laugh. "It's this cold, hard Mexican ceramic tile."

Kara laughed, patting her hand sympathetically. "You poor thing."

"Anyway," Lena took a breath. "We talked about it for a long time, and I said 'this is what I want', and he said 'well, I don't', and... it was over. And he left, and the truth is, I really... I feel really fine. I am over him. Completely. That was it for him, that as the most he could give, and every time I think about it, I'm more and more convinced I did the right thing."

Kara regarded her curiously for a moment, before breaking into a smile. Lena focused on a few errant crumbs that still clung to her lips and found the whole picture oddly endearing.

"You sound really healthy," Kara said.

Lena sighed, unconvinced. "Yeah."

They stayed until dusk, talking and not noticing the time as it passed. They walked out of the café once a server sheepishly flipped the sign of the door to 'Closed'- Lena left a large tip on their way out.

Neither moved away yet, both content to just keep walking aimlessly through the streets of National City. Lena fiddled with her bag; Kara had her hands deep in her pockets. Lena regarded the high-rises that made the skyline so distinct.

"Well," she said after a beat. "At least I got the apartment, with the ceramic tile and all."

Kara laughed. "Everyone says that to me, too. But I don't get it—what's so hard about getting an apartment?"

Lena raised a brow. "In National City? It's a nightmare!"

"No, it isn't, not if you know where to look." Kara said with a shake of her head. The sun caught on her blonde locks as they waved with the movement. "Just read the obituaries. Find out who died, then go see the doorman. Honestly, they should just put the two sections together: Real Estate/Obituaries. Imagine it: Mr. Klein died today, leaving a wife, two children, and a spacious two-bedroom apartment with air-conditioning. Utilities included. Walking distance to National City Metro."

Lena laughed, hard, and Kara's smile widened.

"When we first met," Kara continued after a breath. "I really didn't like you that much-"

"I didn't like you." Lena interrupted.

"You did, too. You were just so... uptight. You're much softer now."

Lena narrowed her eyes. "I hate that. It sounds like a compliment, but really it's an insult!"

Kara raised her hands in surrender. "Alright, alright. You're still hard as nails."

"I just didn't want to sleep with you," Lena said, hands coming to rest at her waist. "So you decided to write that off as a character flaw instead of dealing with the possibility that it might have something, anything to do with you."

Kara paused, pondering. Her eyes lit up. "OK. What's the statute of limitations on apologies?"

Lena smiled, narrowing her eyes. "Ten years."

"Oof, I'm really cutting it fine. How about this: I'm sorry."

"Apology accepted," Lena quipped. "Hey. Would you like to have dinner with me sometime?"

Kara's eyes bugged out, as if she did not know how to take the proposal. She looked pensively at Lena, but her blue eyes were full of mirth. "Lena," she muttered. "Are we... are we becoming friends now?"

Lena flushed. "Well. Take it or leave it, Danvers."

Kara's smile finally reached her eyes. "Oh, I'll take it."