Another month went by, and as the winter faded and the air heated to a more comfortable temperature, all Kara wanted to do was to be outside.
"Let's go for a walk," Kara offered, taking Lena's hand as she rose from her seat in the library. "I'm falling asleep."
"I know," Lena huffed. "Never able to focus on a damn thing."
Kara mumbled, "I'm sorry," and dropped her gaze, so Lena lifted her chin and smiled at her.
When the sunlight hit Kara's face as she lifted her head, Lena felt herself melt like warm chocolate.
"Kara," she whispered, kissing the girl's cheek. "I love you exactly as you are."
"Really?" Kara asked shyly, biting her lip.
Lena nodded, which caused Kara to give a weak smile.
"Let's go," the brunette announced, squeezing her partner's hand and leading her out of the building. Once they were outside together, Lena asked, "So, why'd you quit track and field?"
"I wanted to spend more time with you," Kara answered simply, shrugging her shoulders as they continued to walk.
"What?" Lena gaped, stopping in her tracks. "You quit because of me?"
"Yeah. So?"
"So, you love track!"
"Yeah, well… I love you more, so…"
"Oh, Kara… I wish you hadn't done that."
Again, Kara shrugged and kissed Lena's cheek.
"At least I haven't stepped down from Class President yet."
"You'd better not!"
"Why?"
"Because you have friends. You're a strong, rallying force for the class. You advocate for everyone. They need that."
"I guess so," Kara sighed. "I just want to be with you all the time, Lena."
"Baby… Come on. You need to have a life."
As she continued to walk, not letting go of Lena's hand, Kara thought about the way she'd stepped back from her duties as Supergirl over the past two months. But, hey… Clark liked the spotlight anyway. The ultimate Super. The public liked him best. And he had it under control. At least for now.
Besides… Lena was the sunlight in her life. She'd become the most important person Kara had ever been close to, including her sister.
"I do have a life," Kara finally replied. "You."
"Kara…"
"What?"
"Don't."
"Don't what?"
"Don't make me that person."
"Of course you're that person. You'll always be that person."
Stopping again, Lena threw her arms around Kara and held her tightly.
"I love you, Kara Danvers."
"I love you too, Miss Luthor."
Hesitating and pulling away, Lena looked down.
"I hate my last name."
"No," Kara challenged. "You hate what your family has done to it."
With a nod, Lena replied, "That's true."
"But you can make that name whatever you want, Lena. It can be entirely your own. Make yourself proud."
"Are… Are you proud?"
"Are you kidding me?" Kara laughed. "So proud it's stupid. I'm like an overenthusiastic soccer mom!"
Laughing, Lena hugged her again and kissed her lips.
"You're too cute."
"You too, babe."
"Nah…"
"Fine… We're too cute."
Lena grinned at this and nodded her head, grabbing Kara's hand again and continuing their walk.
~!~!~
That night, as always, when Lena dropped Kara off at home, neither wanted to say goodnight.
Though they were physically parted, Lena couldn't stand Kara's absence, so she called the girl around eleven that night.
"Hey, babe," Kara answered the call. "You okay?"
It wasn't like Lena to call so late unless something was wrong.
"Yeah, I just… wanted to hear your voice."
"Good. Me too."
Hearing the smile in Kara's voice, Lena smiled too.
"You're perfect."
"You're perfect, Lena," Kara sighed happily, relaxing against the pillows on her bed. "I miss you."
"Hey, Kara?"
"Yes, love."
"Can I keep you forever?"
"Of course you can, goober. Who else could I ever fall in love with, when you hold my whole heart?"
"Sap," Lena teased.
When Kara replied, "Just for you, baby," Lena blushed.
Then, after a pause, Lena asked, "Hey… Do you want to hang out with me while I do my chem lab homework after school tomorrow? It'll be boring without you."
"I'd love to!" Kara exclaimed, but after a revelation followed, she added, "Shit, babe. I can't. I have a meeting with the class officials tomorrow after school. I can meet you there after that though? The meeting should only be an hour. We're planning out senior prom."
"Prom?" Lena laughed. "Wow."
"What? You know every school ever does it, right?"
"Yeah, well… It's silly."
Kara hesitated, then replied, "It wouldn't be silly if you went with me."
"Oh, um… I… Gee, Kara. I don't know… It's not really my thing, and I—"
"Okay. Sorry," Kara said shortly.
"Hey, don't be like that. I just… I don't dance anymore, okay?"
"Anymore?"
"Um, yeah… Mother used to force me to do ballet."
"You do ballet?"
"I said used to!" Lena snapped. "Now, drop it. Point is, I don't dance."
"Okay," Kara sighed, her tone betraying her disappointment. "I should go."
After a long bout of silence, Lena said, "Kara, wait."
"Yeah?"
"I'll go with you."
"What? Really? You will?!" Kara cried, sitting straight up in bed from the excitement of Lena's change of heart.
"Yeah, but don't make a big deal out of it! And I swear if they crown you prom queen…"
"Uh… I mean… I kinda voted for you already."
"KARA!"
"Just kidding!" Kara howled with laughter. "I know you'd assassinate me."
"You fucking better not."
"We're not even voting yet. It starts Monday."
Lena paused, then asked, "Who are you voting for?"
"I dunno yet. I mean, the only lady I want to see in a crown is you, darling."
Eyes wide, Lena felt her mouth go dry and her world fade from consciousness.
"Lena? You with me?"
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm here."
"Thank you… Thank you so, so much. Honestly, I've been thinking about this we got together. It would really be a dream come true to see you walk in in a beautiful gown and just…"
"What?"
"Tear it off you at the end of the night."
Blushing, Lena replied, "You'd better not tear my best dress."
"You already know what you're wearing?!" Kara gaped, shocked.
"I have a dress in mind, yes. What about you?"
"I, um… I actually wanted to mention that…"
"Okay… Shoot."
"I only have skirts… Will you help me pick out a dress?"
Chuckling, Lena told her, "It would be my pleasure, dear."
"Fuck yes! I am the luckiest girl alive!"
"Oh, please. Quit making it a big deal."
"Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you," Kara said, her words of gratitude pouring out rapidly.
"Enough. Go to sleep," Lena laughed. "You're really too much, Kara."
"Alright, alright. I'll stop. Thank you, though. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
"Nothing in the world could keep me away."
Sighing happily, Kara said goodnight and ended the call upon Lena doing the same.
~!~!~
The next day after school, Kara ran all the way to the chemistry room. She was 15 minutes later than she'd promised.
Luckily, Lena was still sitting at the table, diligently focused on the experiment she was conducting over the Bunsen burner.
"I am so sorry," Kara blurted, as soon as she made it to the doorway. "The meeting ran late and I couldn't leave. I didn't mean to—"
"You're fine, Four Eyes," Lena said affectionately, smiling up at her. "Sit down. Watch this."
Kara sat down beside her partner and looked at the materials with interest.
"What's that?" she asked, pointing to a powder.
"Oh, nothing," Lena said smoothly, wearing a smug grin. "Just some exceptionally hazardous materials I'm going to use to ace my year-end project."
"Uh… Lena…"
"Wear these," Lena ordered, shoving safety goggles and a lab coat into Kara's hands.
Hesitating, Kara took the lab coat and goggles and put them on as directed.
Lena smiled brightly at her, and Kara returned her attention to the experiment at hand.
"Lena…" she said slowly. "Be careful."
"Yeah, yeah," Lena laughed. "I know what I'm doing, Four Eyes."
Biting her lip as Lena started the chemical reaction, Kara watched. Then, when the loud bang of a chair falling over in the next room echoed through the hallway, Lena jumped, knocking over the beaker and spilling the toxic acid all over the counter and splashing it sideways. To Kara's horror, it ended up covering her own arm and burning through the lab coat in seconds, leaving Kara's unburned skin on display for Lena to see.
Oh, fuck, she was thinking, knowing all too well that her lack of apparent injury would give everything away.
"Kara?" Lena asked, the acid forgotten as she stumbled off the stool and took several steps back.
There was only one woman Lena could think of who could have survived that spill unscathed.
"Lena. Lena… Listen. I—"
"Oh, my God," the brunette breathed. "You're… You're Supergirl." Then, after a brief pause where shock bled into fury and a deep sense of betrayal, Lena screamed, "HOW? How could you not tell me?! How could you fucking keep this from me?!"
"Lena. Lena, please. I was just trying to keep you—"
"Don't. Don't fucking—" Lena started, but found that the ache in her chest stopped the rest of the words she so desperately wanted to scream.
She was having a panic attack, and they both knew it. Kara, temporarily unfazed by Lena's rage, approached her quickly and tried to grab her hands.
"Lena, it's okay. Breathe. Breathe—"
"DON'T FUCKING TOUCH ME!"
Lips parting, Kara stared as her eyes began to well with tears.
"Get out," Lena said, voice dark and low.
The Lena Kara knew wasn't there. She was somewhere Kara couldn't reach.
"Get OUT!" Lena screamed, starting to sob as she fell to her knees clutching her chest.
"Lena, I'm not leaving you like this," Kara asserted, struggling to stop her own tears. "I'm sorry. I didn't think—"
"Get the fuck away from me, Supergirl," the brunette hissed darkly, desperately struggling for air.
"Lena—"
"Out! Now!"
Tears suddenly unrestrained by Lena's conviction and the hatred Kara heard in her voice, the hero reluctantly stumbled out of the classroom and left the building. Without caring for who saw – luckily, no one did – Kara took off, flying back home with tears still streaming rapidly down her pale cheeks.
~!~!~
"Kara?" Alex questioned, upon seeing a sobbing Kara step through the front door. "What's wrong?" Kara collapsed to her knees and covered her face in her hands, so Alex pressed, "Kara, what happened?"
"She found out," Kara choked out. "She knows, and now she hates me."
"Oh, fuck, Kara," Alex breathed, kneeling beside her sister. "I know you're hurt, honey, but… but Luthors have always hated Supers. Always. I told you this wouldn't be different. I—"
"I don't need a fucking 'I told you so' right now, Alex! And just so you know, she doesn't hate Supergirl. She hates me because I've been hiding from her."
Eyes wide, Alex asked, "Really?"
"Yes," Kara moaned. "I'm the biggest piece of shit. I don't even deserve to be stepped on and stuck on the bottom of her shoe. I hate myself, Alex. I hate myself."
"Oh, honey… This will pass, okay? Take a deep breath. It'll pass. You'll be okay."
"NO!" Kara screamed, feeling Lena's rage filling her too. "You don't fucking get it, Alex."
"What don't I get?" Alex questioned. "Teenage heartbreak? You know I've—"
"No. This," Kara said, wiping her tears roughly on the back of her hands before pulling a small velvet box from the backpack she'd dropped on the floor beside her.
When Alex caught the box that was thrown at her full-force, she let out an audible gasp, upon opening it and seeing the ring there.
"Oh, fuck," she breathed. "Kara… I'm sorry. I didn't know. I thought this was just a—"
"A what? A phase? That I'd just wake up and get over her?" the blonde hissed back. "I'll never be over her, Alex. I was going to ask her at prom."
"Sweetie… I know you're upset, but you've got to—"
"Don't tell me what I have to do!" Kara shouted, slamming her fits on the floor, unintentionally cracking the wood flooring.
"Okay. Okay, I'm sorry," Alex said quickly, upon realizing the extent of her sister's rage. "I'm sorry. Come here, okay? Just… let me hug you."
"Don't touch me," the hero shot back, pulling away, but Alex moved closer and wrapped her arms tightly around her sister.
They didn't always get along. They didn't always agree. But they definitely always loved each other.
Kara fell forward, sobbing into Alex's shoulder as the two sat on the floor.
Author's note: I know, I know. I'm a terrible human! But it had to happen sometime... Stay tuned to see if I can fix these useless goobers!