A/N: Apologies for the shortened chapter today (or tonight, if you and I happen to be in the same time zone). Please feel free to review, they truly make my day!

3.

"He hasn't kissed you?!"

"Shh! Alex!" Kara frantically glances around the bagel shop, hoping no one in line notices her sister's loud mouth. "It's bad enough without you announcing it to the world!"

"Okay, sure," she hobbles a few steps as the line moves. "But, why?"

"I don't know why!" Kara sighs, casting her eyes down and fidgeting with the hem of her cardigan. "I think, maybe, he's nervous?"

"Nervous?! He practically confessed his undying love for you! And now he suddenly can't bring himself to kiss you?!"

"Alex, please!" Her anxiety spikes horrendously and Kara silently curses the tears she feels building in her eyes. She avoids her sister's gaze, embarrassed that the man she had twirling, twisting, confusing, amazing, desirable feelings for would not touch her. "I-I don't know what I did wrong. He said he...longed for me. And that he wanted to make me happy. But I...I haven't seen him since he left my loft."

The line moves forward again and Alex limps herself to the counter, placing an order for two bagel sandwiches with coffee and placing a twenty dollar bill on the counter before leading Kara to a table. "So it's been three days since he raced to your front door, apologized for being a jerk, revealed his true feelings, and still nothing?"

"Right," Kara sighs. "It's hopeless, right?"

"No." Alex smiles gently. "No, it's not hopeless. It's just...he's not...I mean, have you ever met a Culuan before? Maybe this is how they court."

A giggle escapes her sister's lips. "Court? Really, Alex?"

She rolls her eyes. "You know what I mean. Besides, why haven't you kissed him?"

Kara's cheeks flush red and she ducks her eyes down. "Me?"

"Yes, you! Why is that so hard to rationalize?"

"I mean, I wouldn't - I couldn't - I don't -"

"You do, and you could, and you so would if you had the balls."

Kara scrunches her nose at the vulgarity. "I detest that statement."

"Ah, well," Alex winks. "I detest your detesting, sweet sister. Now, answer me. What's the hold up? There's no rule book in modern day dating. If a woman, such as yourself, wants a kiss from the handsome man who claims to 'long for her', why not go get it herself?"

She chews her bottom lip in thought, and Alex can only roll her eyes again at her sister's innocence. "Maybe...but, wouldn't it be a bit forward?"

"That's the point." She takes a drink of her coffee, eyeing Kara carefully over the brim. Though virtually made of steel and certainly more reserved than most women her age, the Krypotian was clearly struggling with Alex's blunt answer to the problem at hand.

And then suddenly, a thought struck her. Alex furrows her brow and a frown decorates her face. "Does this have to do with Mon-El?"

"What?! No!" Kara glares at her. "Why does everyone think there's still something between Mon-El and I?"

Alex shrugs, "I mean, you were really upset when you found out about his marriage. Especially when you realized how lovely a person Imra was."

"I wasn't 'really' upset!" Kara protests, outraged. "And I don't have any feelings for Mon-El!"

Alex raises a brow.

"...Not anymore. Not after -"

"Brainy?"

"Don't call him that, he hates it." Kara crosses her arms in front of her chest and looks away. "How long does it take to make a stupid bagel anyway?!"

Sighing, Alex quickly glances at the counter, noticing their food is well on the way. "If it's not about Mon-El, why do get so irritated whenever he's brought up?"

"Uh, I don't know," Kara scoffs. "Probably because everyone keeps linking us together. He's married. Group him with his wife and leave me out of the conversations."

"You know," Alex smiles as the waitress sets their order down and quickly turns to leave, clearly wanting to avoid the fury of her blond customer. "You're just completely convincing right now."

Kara's glare could have shot a hole through a mountain. She stood abruptly, grabbing her bagel in one hand and coffee in another before stomping out of the cafe, leaving Alex alone and - again - rolling her eyes at her younger sister.

***O***O***O***

He hadn't meant to avoid Kara, truly. He had wanted to spend as much time with her as possible, as he'd said. But...there was work to be done. As always. And all of his attentions were required to focus on their tasks at hand.

When one job had reached completion, Mon-El or Imra or even J'onn had another for him to tackle. He hadn't left the lab in three days. He hadn't slept in three days either - the full seventy-two hours of his time being dedicated to whatever and whoever needed him.

Which is probably why he was seeing double right now.

"Hello?" The orderly - Tessa - waves her hand in front of his face, her lips drawn down into a frown. "Did you even hear what I said?"

He blinks and gives a slight shake of his head. "I'm sorry, what were you saying?"

She sighs with annoyance. "I asked if you'd gotten that biomedical technology off your ship yet? Remember? You said you'd bring it three days ago. And four days before that you promised our team could use it for a few of our patients. That equals an entire week I've been waiting on you."

"Oh," his shoulders slump. "Right. I'm truly sorry. If you just give me a few moments I can retrieve it from the ship."

She crosses her arms and narrows her eyes at him. "If I let you out of my sight again another week will go by and we still won't have it. I'm coming with you."

Querl sighs, giving in far easier than he normally would with such a stubborn person. "Very well. It's just right -"

"I know where you ship is," Tessa snaps at him. "It's practically impossible to miss the damn thing, it's taking up so much space."

"Yes, of course. You're right." There was no point in arguing with the girl, she was relentless in her disdain towards him and clearly didn't trust him.

He welcomes the silence between them as they walk the halls of the D.E.O. headquarters. Even with Tessa pouting and no doubt cursing him beneath her breath. It matters not to Querl though, for his thoughts could only venture to Kara and how terribly he wishes he could simply end his three day work bender to have a relaxing weekend with her. Though the likelihood of that happening was slim to none.

Once upon the ship it was easy to locate the technology Tessa requested. A few of her patients were suffering from broken limbs and ribs, which could heal quicker and more efficiently with a few of Querl's own inventions. Another, as she described, suffers from a fever-like illness that had lasted weeks, but had yet to reach a critical state. Instead, the patient deteriorates at a much slower rate, dragging out the horrid effects and bringing the man to tears and wails of agony that plague the rest of the medbay. For that, he only had a serum that could lessen the effects, hopefully giving him time to find a true cure to aid the agent.

"Finally," Tessa rolls her eyes as he hands her his precious electronics. Snobbishly, she sticks out her hand, palm up, and eyes the vial of green liquid Querl still held.

The Culuan narrows his eyes at her. "Do not overdose Agent Walters with this. Two drops at most in his water, once per day. Do you understand?"

She glares at him and snarls "Yes," before snatching the medicine and stuffing it in her lab coat pocket. "You're completely insufferable, I hope you know that."

He returns the annoyed look, "Once I've created a word to describe your particular type of shining attitude, I shall find you immediately and share it."

"Looking forward to it." She turns on her heel and quickly storms back to her own end of the D.E.O. Headquarters.

"Can't imagine how terrible her bedside manner must be," he grumbles, watching her go. The girl hadn't a reason to hate him as she so clearly did. He'd been late on his delivery of a promise, true. But at least he'd delivered at all. That had to have counted for something. Though clearly not to Tessa.

He shook his head, feeling a fuzz creeping around the edges of his twelve intellelects. It must have been the continuous hours without rest. Or the lack of food he'd eaten in the passed few days. Or the neverending piles of work and tasks to be completed. Or maybe he was coming down with some kind of illness himself. It was hard to say, truly.

But as Tessa walks away, the stomp of her heels still audible, Querl could swear that the entire ship he stood upon shifted. Or, rather, spun. Perhaps it'd even flipped, for all he knew.

He gave his head a shake again, trying to brush off the obvious drain he was feeling. He had no time to dawdle or even think of taking a break - no matter the strain he was feeling.

And yet, his body clearly disagreed with him. And suddenly he collapses to the floor.