Ch12-Stress relief?

Monitor Womb…

"Now, what would Batman say if he saw this?" The man's smooth, deep voice jolted her from her nap.

Shaking her head free of the cobwebs, Shayera glanced to her right to find John Stewart perched in the seat next to hers at the monitor station. She could feel her ears burning from embarrassment at being caught. Embarrassment which quickly gave way to anger.

"Then I suppose it's a good thing he didn't." She shot back, her eyes narrowed defensively.

John put up both hands in mock surrender. "Whoa, whoa. I come in peace, Shay." He began, using his nickname for her, noticing some tension leave her body. His eyes softened as he drank her in. "Look, I just came to see how you're doing. I know that you've been on duty for nearly twenty hours without rest."

Truthfully, she was tired, and she admitted this to herself when she couldn't even muster the strength to properly defend herself. Had she been caught dozing at her post with the Thanagarian Guard, she would have been dealt with in a much more permanent manner. Exhaling a breath, she spoke in a tired voice, "I suppose you are here to take care of me, then?" The chuckle that followed was delivered just as tiredly.

Placing a warm hand on her shoulder and forcing her to look at him, John spoke with utter conviction.

"I would love to do nothing more than 'take care of you', but that's not what you need now." There was no mistaking his meaning. For added effect, he allowed her to see the desire in his eyes. Her eyes widened as she sucked in a sharp breath.

When did he become so forward? She wondered. She and John and had been engaging in their little song and dance for several months now. Although it was no secret there were feelings between the two, Shayera refused to act on hers until he'd resolved whatever issues were present between he and Mari, aka Vixen. When she confronted him about it, he was adamant any dealings they'd had were old news. Shayera did not want whatever attraction was growing between herself and John to adversely affect the tentative friendship she had cultivated with the female. In fact, even Mari encouraged her to seek out John, however, she could not miss the forlorn look which would cross the other woman's face whenever his name was spoken. She would remain steadfast in her self-proclaimed promise, although it was becoming increasingly difficult as of late. Her dreams always seemed to center around a certain caramel-colored face with warm chestnut brown eyes and a mouth that must have been created for sin. She decided to end her ruminations there, before she ventured into dangerous territory.

"My quarters are closer. You can rest there." His voice reeled her back to the moment. "And not to worry, my shift officially starts now. I'll stay rooted here, so you can rest knowing I won't be sneaking in to…tend to you." Although he'd intended it to be a joke, the serious look on his face stated he hated the truth in his statement.

Shayera could feel the heat enveloping her entire being, closing her eyes briefly to draw on whatever reserves of strength she still possessed. Standing slowly, she was powerless against the movement of her hand as it came to rest on his shoulder as she nodded and brushed past him. She knew his gaze followed her every moment; stopping at the door, she looked over her shoulder at the man behind her, her eyes relaying everything she couldn't –and wouldn't—say at the moment. "Thank you."

Meanwhile, elsewhere on the Satellite…

Kal's step had an extra spring to it as he rounded the corridor. He had a date to keep. He could feel the grin threatening to take root on his face as he picked up his pace, finally giving in and jogging without the use of super speed the rest of the way to The Kitchen. The Kryptonian chuckled briefly, reflecting on the nickname given to the Holographic Training Room by Wally and Michael Carter, aka Booster Gold.

"From here on out this place is gonna be known as The Kitchen. 'Cause if you can't stand the heat-" Wally began.

"Then stay the hell outta the kitchen!" Michael finished for his friend, high-fiving the other man as they laughed proudly at their joke.

For some reason, the name stuck and the training room was dubbed The Kitchen. Presently, he was en route to meet Diana for a bit of sparring. Since their return from Zyphon Xia weeks ago, it had become an unspoken agreement that they would meet every day before last meal to engage in some heavy duty sparring. Lately, their sparring had grown extremely intense, brutally aggressive, even. A tingle went through his entire body as he thought of the steal-healing bruise on his shoulder. Diana was especially relentless yesterday and fought as if possessed. Her prowess as a skilled fighter lent her the advantage of strategy and agility that trumped his mildly superior strength. She pinned him to nearly every surface in the room countless times, her eyes continually dancing with his as they battered one another. Although they had yet to speak of the kiss, it was always a trending topic in the back of his mind. His meeting with Bruce reiterated the fact that he needed to take action in the situation between he and Diana. It was always his intention to approach the issue, however, coherent thought always seemed to leave his mind when he gazed into the eyes of his best friend. Finally reaching the corridor which would lead to the training room, Kal's strides came to a halt as he saw the woman in question waiting patiently outside the door to the room, an amused smile on her lips. Just as he was about to ask why she was waiting outside the door, Diana held a finger to her lips, signaling him to remain silent.

"It appears we'll have to wait a bit longer as someone is utilizing the room."

Damn that, he thought, slightly irked that someone would encroach upon their time. By now, it was known by nearly everyone that they met at this time for a workout. Fully intending to open the door and see who exactly was the cause of this delay, Diana stilled his hand and tapped her ear. Listen, she mouthed.

'If I said my heart was beating loud,
If we could escape the crowd somehow,
If I said I want your body now
Would you hold it against me?

Cuz' you feel like paradise,
And I need a Vacation tonight
So if I said I want your body now
Would you hold is against me?'

Kal's ears picked up the pounding bass line as Britney Spears ooh'ed and ahh'ed about sexual tension. Boy, could he relate. He only knew of one person that preferred to work out while blasting the tunes of Madame Spears. Wally. Just as he was about to open the portal door, his ears picked up on two other distinct beats beneath the booming bass of the song. Thump, thump, thump-thump-thump…Diana laughed as the realization dawned on his face and pulled him to the small bench located to the far right of the door. Mildly shocked, he allowed himself to be led. They sat in companionable silence as Diana allowed him to come to terms with what was going on beyond the door.

"Was that what I think it-"

"Seems my sister was in need of a workout, as well." Diana barely held her laughter in check.

Kal was utterly flustered and sagged against the wall behind him. He winced immediately, having applied too much pressure to the bruise on his shoulder. Her earlier amusement forgotten, Diana turned to her friend, worry evident on her face.

"Kal?"

Breathing through the mild discomfort, "Nothing to worry about, Diana."

"Nothing? Superman doesn't wince, Kal. Let me see what's troubling you." She pulled him towards her so that she could inspect the shoulder he favored, kneeling on the bench to get a better look. Being positioned as she was, Diana had inadvertently put her backside parallel to his line of vision. Kal placed his hands on her thighs to steady himself and she tugged at the neck of his shirt to see the source of his pain.

Thank God for whoever created yoga pants, he thought, pleased with the sight before him.

Diana finally separated the skin tight under armor tee from Kal's body and immediately saw the ugly, purple bruise on her friend. She gasped at the sight, instinctively reaching for the hem of his shirt and removing it swiftly. "Kal! I knew this would happen!"

Recovering from the shock of having her pull his shirt off, Kal sat upright, facing his concerned friend. "Diana, really, its nothing. I'll be all healed up by night's end."

His words fell on deaf ears as she had stood abruptly. She murmured to herself as she paced, his shirt still clutched tightly in her hand. He stood, trying to still her motions, only to have Diana brush his hands off as her self-recriminations grew in intensity. Initially, he could understand her every word, but soon she'd slipped back into her native greek—Ancient Greek—as she continued to berate herself.

"ηλίθιος αλλοδαπός βλασφημίας! δεν θα άκουγε τις προειδοποιήσεις!"

"Hey, hey, Diana." He stopped her movement by placing hand on each arm, forcing her to face him. "I'm fine, I swear. No need to keep beating yourself up."

The look she leveled on him was a mixture of anger and annoyance. "Beat myself up, Kal? In case you weren't listening, I was berating you!"

"Wha- me?"

"Yes. You. You can hear a pin drop from over a mile away, but you can't hear when I –I-" she faltered.

"Uh, well it was kinda hard to understand when you speak Ancient Greek." He threw in lamely.

She was momentarily confused by his statement. " What? Nevermind that, Kal. I told you it was a bad idea for me to remove the vambraces, but noooo, you insisted. 'Diana, I'm Superman. Besides, it'll make the sparring more interesting.' I was a fool to listen. I very well could have killed you!" She chastised herself.

He winced as she repeated his argument from the previous evening. While the pain was not unbearable, Diana without the restraints of her vambraces was a sight to behold—wild, reckless, and her powers exponentially increased. It was great! He never realized it would affect her so to see a simple bruise on him. He assumed it would take nothing but a few words of comfort to assuage his friend, but she would have none of it. He immediately chastised himself for putting her in the situation in the first place. And to what end? Just so he could excise his pent up aggression? Way to go, bucko.

"Diana." She only responded with more pacing, his presence forgotten.

"Diana."

"Diana!" His finally resorted to his commanding tone when his earlier attempts to reach her went unheard. She finally stopped pacing, her face a mask of regret and anger as she looked him in the eye. Taking both of her hands in his own and holding her gaze, he softened his voice. "Diana, you've got to believe me when I say that I'm fine and that I am so sorry for putting you in such a position. I'm so very sorry." He dropped one of her hands, his free hand finding a home against her cheek. Instinctively, she closed her eyes and leaned into the touch. He took a moment longer than necessary to look at her while her eyes were closed, realizing for the first time that she wore her hair in a ponytail, and the simple act making her appear carefree and while simultaneously further accentuating her already stunning visage.

Opening her eyes, Diana's free hand drifted until it found a home over his heart. Her voice was breathtakingly sincere as she spoke. "Kal, I would never do anything to intentionally hurt you and by agreeing to your request, I did just that."

"Hey, I asked for it, remember? Besides, I thought it would do us good to not have to hold back. We both needed it, Diana." Looking into the eyes of his best friend, he decided there was no better time to discuss the proverbial elephant that was always in the room with them. "Besides, I fear this will be a recurring theme if we continue to dance around the real issue."

To her credit, Diana did not feign shock or ignorance at his statement. The corners of her mouth upturned briefly, "You are right. Gaea, I suppose the time has come to discuss what's going on between us. I, myself, wondered how long we would run from it."

A short chuckle rumbled in his chest, "I wouldn't say running. More like, waiting for the right moment, Diana."

Laughing herself, she freed her other hand and rested them both at the waistband of the basketball shorts he wore. She always thought he looked more carefree and happy when dressed casually. "No, Kal. I'm pretty sure we ran." She joked.

He smiled, his other hand joining to gently frame her face. The moment stretched out as it grew serious. Her hold at his waist grew firm as his intense gazed threatened to rid her of breath.

"I'm going to kiss you now, Diana." He wasn't asking permission. She couldn't deny him if he had. He dipped his head, bridging the gap between their lips. Both closing their eyes, he brushed his nose across hers in a whisper of an Eskimo Kiss, a sigh escaping her lips at the contact. Just as his lips began to brush hers, they both heard the telltale hiss of an opening door.

"Great workout, babe-whoa!" Wally exclaimed, taking in the scene before him.

Donna tried to quiet him but she could see the moment was already broken between the two. She watched as her sister and the man known a Superman remained in their embrace. Although the imminent kiss was long forgotten, they still held each other, resting their foreheads together. Her heart swelled at the sight.

"Come on, Wally. Let's get ready for dinner." She whispered as she led her boyfriend away from the two.

"Aww, babe, I wanna see!"

"Wally!"