Chapter Text
My sister and I have a pretty strict sister night ritual. Every Friday, we get together with pot stickers, popcorn, and various other snacks to watch movies and reconnect after a hectic week. Even though our jobs leave us both on call pretty much 24/7 we make an effort to look at our phones for emergencies only. But when I see Lena Luther's name flashing in bold right in the middle of The Princess Bride, I can't help but look.
"Is everything okay?" Alex says with concern as she pauses the movie.
"I think so. I have no idea why Lena would be calling me." The phone still buzzes in my hand and I furrow my eyebrows, equal parts intrigued and concerned.
"Just answer it."
"Are you sure." Once she nods, I go into the other room for some privacy even though I know I'll end up recieting the conversation word for word with my sister once I get back.
For some reason my palms are sweating and my voice is shaking as I answer. "Lena?"
"Ah Kara, I'm so glad I caught you." Unlike myself, the CEO sounds confident and cool, like this is just something we do now, talk on the phone and worry about each other.
"What's up?" What's up? God, I'm lame.
Lena chuckles lightly before responding and just like that her laugh is in my top 10 favorite noises. "Well, you know how you said you owe me big? I've come up with a way for you to repay your debt."
"Yeah, okay anything!"
She laughs again and I'm in heaven. "Typically I love being the CEO of L Corp, but there some unfortunate draw backs that I just can't get around. Tomorrow night there is a fundraiser event for one of our investors that I am obligated to go to. The type with a fancy dinner, dancing, and powerful men whom I have absolutely no interest in. So I was hoping..." For a brief second her commanding voice falters and Lena Luther actually sounds nervous. "I was hoping that you would accompany me."
"Like to cover the event as a reporter?" I'm dumbfounded. Lena can't be serious can she? I mean I'm brand new to the reporter world...
"No." Lena takes a deep breath. "As my date. "What? A date? Like a date, date? I don't know what to say! As i'm trying to sort out my feelings and formulate a proper sentence, I think she takes my prolonged silence as a bad sign. "You don't have to-"
Before she can finish and before I can over think it, I blurt out "I would love to!"
I think we both breathe a sigh of relief. "Great, I'll pick you up at 8."
"What should I wear?" My mind is going a million miles a minute but the one thought, besides Oh My God, that sticks out is that I have nothing in my closest that will come even remotely close to what the beyond beautiful CEO will wear.
"Kara, you'll be beautiful in anything." And with that Lena hangs up, leaving me with blushing cheeks and heart palpitations.
I stumble back into the living room with this look that must be priceless, because Alex is on her feet in seconds. "What'd she say? Are you okay?"
I nod like an idiot. "So um, tomorrow I have a date."
"With Lena Luthor?"
"With Lena Luthor. And I'm freaking out!" Alex looks more than a little confused and I don't blame her.
We sit back down on the couch together and she takes my hand, slipping into the protective big sister mode she does so well. "Is this something you want Kara? I mean you never really expressed an interest in girls before and you just got out of a relationship."
"I don't know, I mean sexuality is fluid right? Just because I haven't had romantic feelings for women before doesn't mean I like men exclusively. And from the first time I met Lena she intrigued me. We have this really interesting chemistry and I want to explore that, not just ignore it because she's a woman." I can feel myself getting worked up the more I talk and tears well in my eyes even though I don't want them too.
I know Alex will love me no matter what it, it's not that, but I've never thought about this part of myself before and it's overwhelming. "Kara..." Alex takes my hand and squeezes it tightly in a show of support. Wordlessly she encourages me to continue and I don't know how I got so lucky to have her as my sister.
"Back on Krypton, being gay or bisexual or whatever wasn't necessarily looked at as a bad thing but it wasn't great either. For someone like me, being the only child from a prominent family, I would be looked at as less than." Tears are in full force now as I stop trying to hold it all together and just let it out. "But I'm not on Krypton anymore, I'm on earth, and all I know is that I get these butterflies whenever Lena makes me laugh, and that the way she looks at me makes me feel like I'm flying. And i actually know what flying feels like!"
My sister and I both laugh at this and I can feel the tension slowly leaving my body and being replaced with nervous excitement. "She called me beautiful."
"Oh Kara." Alex pulls me into a tight hug. I melt into her embrace, giggling like a teenage girl. Once we pull back Alex is looking at me exactly the same as she did before "Come on, we need to pick out your outfit! And..." Alex bites the corner of her lip. "Would now be a good time to tell you about my giant gay crush on Maggie Sawyer?"
"As if I didn't already know!"
xoxoxoxoxo
"Okay Kara, you got this." I say to myself as I look in the mirror, trying to make light of a situation that is actually killing me from nerves. "Just be cool. Act casual." As if I've ever been cool or casual ever in my whole life.
"Just be yourself!" Alex comes up behind me and rubs my shoulders. "It's going to be great Kara. She's obviously already into you so just be your usual quirky, sweet self."
"You make it sound so much easier than it actually is. My usual self may be quirky and sweet but I'm also more than a little clumsy and completely socially incompetent."
Alex rearranges my hair so that it falls like water over my shoulders and when she looks at me, she has the same expression on her face as the first day I took her flying. "Yes you're different, that's no secret, but if she's worth your time she'll fall in love with those differences."
"Thank you Alex, I needed that." The doorbell rings and my heart rate instantly doubles. I take a deep breath but it hitches in my throat. "Okay, I can totally do this."
My words come out higher than usual and Alex just chuckles at me. "Go get em' Supergirl."
After a quick hug and one more quick peek in the mirror, I go answer the door. But once I see the beautiful woman standing before me, all the words I had disappear and all I'm left with is, "Wow."
Lena chuckles and dips her head in an attempt to hide the adorable blush spreading across her cheeks. "Wow yourself." She gestures to my baby blue, floor length dress that I feel surprisingly confident in. "You look stunning."
It's my turn to blush and I feel the heat all throughout my body. "So do you." Lena really does look beyond beautiful. Her dress is classic black with dark purple accents and slits that go all the way from the floor to her hips. The sight of her makes my head spin, but in the back of my mind I can't help but think that I feel out of place.
"Well, shall we?" Lena offers her arm and it snaps me from my thoughts.
"We shall." Linking our arms together, I can't stop the wide grin that covers my cheeks.
Together we walk into the crisp night air and to the waiting car. Lena opens the door for me and even though it's old fashioned I'm flattered. To my surprise, there's no driver or chauffeur and Lena herself gets behind the wheel. She notices the shock on my face and laughs lightly. "I promise Kara, I'm a much better driver than anyone I could hire. Plus I like the privacy and time alone that driving myself offers."
Embarrassed, I bite my lip and chuckle. "Sorry Lena, I just don't really know what to expect."
"Of me or tonight?"
"Honestly, both."
"Well, why don't you just keep your mind open and see where the night takes us."
"I like that plan." Lena places one hand lightly on my knee and I can't ignore how nice it feels. We smile at each other and I feel my nerves starting to melt away.
The rest of the ride is filled with exchanging anxious/ excited glances and comfortable silence. Before long we are pulling up to a extravagant white mansion with fancy cars swarming the large drive way. I give Lena a questioning gaze. "What is this fundraiser for exactly?"
"One of L Corp's top investors is launching a project of his own. I don't know what it is, no one does, but tonight is supposed to be the big reveal. I'm contractually obligated to be here otherwise I don't prefer this aspect of business. I tend to enjoy a more intimate setting."
The way she says intimate, so commanding and alluring, sends shiver up my spine. I get the feeling that Lena Luthor knows exactly what kind of effect she is having on me.
Lena winks, making me stumble as I get out of the car and heat rise in my cheeks again. For the second time in less than an hour Lena takes my arm, and we walk into the mansion together. As she ascends the stairs she looks the perfect image of a powerful, confident woman but when she glances back at me I can see the anxiety in her eyes. "Lena..." I don't know what I want to say to her. I'm absolutely terrified to be here; it's new and scary and exciting all at the same time and I'm crazy about you but not even sure of my sexuality, but somehow you look more nervous than I do? I just settle on, "Are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm just a little on edge I guess. This is my first public appearance with a woman since the coming out scandal a few years ago." The cameras flash around us as paparazzi scramble to get their fill. She bites the corner of her lip and the mischievous glimmer returns to her eyes. "Hell, we might even make the front page. Truth be told, there's no one else I'd rather be here with."
Her words give me a sudden burst of confidence and I lace our fingers together. "It's going to be a great night."
"It is."