When Kell-Ur helped Lena into the wheelchair and pushed her into the kitchen, she was shocked to find that Kara wasn't the one cooking, in fact, Kara was no where to be seen.
"Wh-where's Kara?" Lena asked, mildly worried that she was left all alone with a man she hardly knew.
Kell-Ur parked the wheelchair at the dining room table and smiled apologetically at her. "She thought that the healing solution was going to keep you sleeping for at least three more hours… So she went to the animal shelter to walk the dogs again."
Lena frowned. She didn't like the sound of that. "She left me alone with you?"
The man corrugated his brow, visibly confused. "Well of course not. I hadn't realized that she brought you back here until I used my key to get in this morning and went searching for Kara. Once I noticed that you were here, I messaged Kara immediately to see what was going on. She filled me in on the details as soon as I got ahold of her."
Lena didn't want to hear about everything that Kell-Ur had access to. She hated that he had a key to Kara's house already, and she wanted to hate him, but he seemed like an utterly kind man.
"You already have a key to her home?"
Kell-Ur turned around from the stove and smiled kindly at her. "Yes, it is Kryptonian custom to begin sharing parts of yourself with your bondmate in the months prior to your bonding. She also has a key to my home. I am a very lucky man; Kara is a fantastic woman."
Lena's heart ached, but at least Kell-Ur knew how lucky he was. "Yes, she is. She's the best."
He turned around with a pan of cooked food and placed it on the counter. "I hope you like eggs and bacon? Kara says that you aren't a big fan of meat, but I do not know many vegetarian recipes right now. I will learn some though; I promise! I want you to feel welcome when you come to stay with us."
Lena wanted to scream… She had intended to hate this man, but he was giving her no reason to do so. He saved her from falling, made her breakfast, wanted to make Lena feel at home there, and appeared to care for and respect Kara… He was the perfect gentleman, but he was the cause of her utter devastation.
Why did the universe hate her so much?
Because I'm a fucking Luthor. She monologed internally
"I certainly won't say no to bacon," She said with a smile. "Bacon and eggs are the only exception to my vegan lifestyle." She lied.
Kell-Ur gave her a broad smile. "Fantastic!" He chirped as he made them their plates.
When he started making a third plate, Lena watched him intently, trying to figure out what he was doing, but when he caught her staring, he gave her a knowing smile. "I'm making Kara's plate. I'm going to place it in the warmer so that it doesn't get cold for her."
And that was it… Lena begrudgingly decided that there was no way she could hate this man. Even if Kara was going to be with him instead of her.
XXX
When Kara walked through the door, Lena felt like a weight was being lifted off her shoulders… Kara was home. Last night hadn't been a dream, and Kara was genuinely in front of her. "Kara!"
Kara smiled and bent down to give her a hug and a kiss on the forehead. "Hey, Lee. Why are you up so early? Your body needs its rest."
"I'm okay." Lena insisted. "I don't have any more pain in my abdomen. All I need is a set of crutches, and I'm good to go."
Kara eyed her suspiciously, but just before she could respond, Kell-Ur came into the room. "Good morning, m'lady." He said as he curtsied goofily. "How was your walk?"
Kara giggled. "It went well! I love dogs so much."
Lena watched them silently as they continued to converse. They talked like friends; they interacted like friends… Just like she and Kara had at the beginning, and that was something she couldn't look past...
Will he replace me in her life?
XXX
Once Kell was gone, Kara sat at the table with Lena and ate her food, savoring every bite. "Isn't he a sweetheart?" Kara mused as she finished the last bit of her food.
Lena chuckled adoringly at Kara when she saw a crumb on the corner of the Kryptonian's mouth. She lifted her thumb to said corner of Kara's lips and wiping a piece of egg off. "He is." She admitted truthfully. "I can see why you are so highly compatible."
Kara smiled. "I really can't believe we're bonding soon. Your leg needs to hurry up and heal so you can travel through the portal with me and we can get Alex together."
"I want it to get better too," Lena said with a tender smile. "I really should have worn my seatbelt."
Kara nodded, her face grave. "If I ever catch you not using your seatbelt again, I'm going to beat you up."
They both laughed at the idea for a moment before Kara turned serious again. "But seriously. I think I know the perfect wedding bracelet shop if you'd want to check it out today."
Lena bit her lip for a moment, all of the humor leaving her body and replaced with dread and heartache. But Kara looked excited at the idea of bracelet shopping with Lena, so she couldn't very well tell her no. She bit back her anguish, and desire and nodded her head with a tightlipped smile on her face. "Of course, Kara. It'd be an honor."
When she was flashed that signature Sunny Danvers smile in return, all of the pain agreeing to go caused her was worth it… She'd do anything to make that smile continue to appear on that beautiful Kryptonian face.
XXX
Lena stood at the jewelry counter with her crutches, and she watched as Kara looked disdainfully at all of the bands. "I like this set," Lena offered. "What do you think about them?"
Kara puckered her lip. "Do you think it will be too weird to have both a Kal-El and a Kell-El in the family?" She asked distractedly.
Lena furrowed her brow, wanting desperately to say yes, to tell her that it'd be too weird and that she should end the relationship… but she couldn't, because lots of people had cousins with the same name as them, what would make this any different? "No, sweetie, of course not. It might get a bit confusing at times because their names sound so similar, but it could be funny at times too."
She felt hope rise within her; maybe if Kara were having doubts, she wouldn't go through with the bounding ceremony. "Are you having doubts?"
Kara shrugged. "Sometimes I wonder why we were matched. I mean, we never even really talked until my mother introduced us the day she had us tested in the Matricomp."
"Isn't that how it always went on Krypton?" She asked, genuinely confused about why Kara was having such a hard time with this.
"Yes," Kara admitted. "I suppose it's just that I'm still so used to Earth's marriage customs that it's hard to wrap my head around Krypton's… I know that he and I are meant to be together, no one gets such a high compatibility rate and fails, it's just a bit overwhelming."
Lena swallowed, thinking that maybe this was her shot. "What if there was someone that you matched higher with? What would happen then?"
Kara chuckled. "No one has ever gotten higher than a ninety-five. Not since the very first Kandorian couple."
Lena nodded, "Right, I know that, but just think... what if there was someone that matched higher to you than Kell-Ur, what would happen then?"
Kara sighed, "Then I could choose to stay with Kell-Ur or be with the other person."
Lena swallowed, an idea swarming about in her mind. "Does the Matricomp only match Kryptonians, or does it match all species?"
"I'm not really sure," Kara admitted. "Only Kryptonians have ever used it,
Lena's hope deflated, taking that as a sign that only Kryptonians could use the Matricomp, but before she could wallow in her pain, she spotted a beautiful Kryptonian steel bracelet set and pointed it out to Kara. "That's it. That's the set, Kara."
Kara looked at the pair, completely forgetting their conversation as her eyes shined with awe. "You're right." She said. "They're gorgeous."
Lena loved the look that Kara had on her face; it was of pure awe and adoration… she only wished that it meant more than just 'thank you for being my best friend.'
XXX
The next three days went by rather quickly, Lena had enjoyed catching up with Kara, but her feelings for Kara were only growing stronger, and the ache in her chest was threatening to suffocate her, Luckily, however, her leg was finally healed, and it was time to Teleport Kara to Earth… Which would mean that Alex would be taking Kara off of her hands for at least a week.
"So, all you have to do is put your hand here," Lena said as she pointed to the handprint scanner. "and type in this code," She pointed to the piece of paper that had the code scrabbled on it. "Then it will take about ten seconds to activate, and you'll be in Alex's lab."
Kara smiled. "We'll be in Alex's lab." She corrected
The way Kara said that caused Lena's heart to flutter… If only she knew what she did to her.
"Right." Lena conceded. "We will be in her office."
Kara nodded, stretched out her hand to the other woman, and Lena eagerly accepted.
Lena watched as Kara punched in the code, and scanned her hand before opening the portal, and with one last look and tentative smile at one another, they were on their way back to Earth… together… Just like she wished they'd always be.
