2. Chapter 2

A/N: Oops. My hand slipped.

I've never written/updated something so fast. And I can sincerely say it's thanks to you all reading and commenting. The response has been amazing and I couldn't have asked for more. So thank you so much, all of your support, in any form, means a lot to me. This one's for you all before it's meant to express me.

If anyone's interested, I might do one from Maggie's POV. Maybe J'onn too. Maybe just one from everyone's POV. But right now I'm mostly thinking one from Detective Sawyer. Let me know what y'all think/want.

As always, none of the characters belong to me. Neither does Wicked and the song Defying Gravity. I'm just currently obsessed with it.

She woke up alone this morning.

She always wakes up alone.

Though this morning, like quite a few in recent memory, she woke up with an overwhelming feeling of bliss.

Her massive bedroom, with its floor to ceiling windows serving as a wall and its sleek, minimal furniture in monochromatic shades isn't – for once – cold and cavernous. She doesn't feel lonely or restless, even though, to the naked eye, this morning is no different than ones she's had all her life.

Her bedmate has a biologically hard-wired internal clock that rouses her with the rising of this planet's yellow sun, like her very cells are humming and reaching for the bright warm light. The knowledge that she hasn't been abandoned is such a comfort, it is breathtaking and almost painful sometimes.

She turns to lie on her back, blinks slow as she takes in the mess that is the sheets on the other side, the indent of a head on the pillow neighboring hers still fresh. Her smile is peaceful as she, once again for the nth time, wonders at the familiarity, at the knowledge that someone spends enough time in her bed that the pillow smells like them regardless of how often she washes the covers; that the pillow is perpetually marked as theirs regardless of how often it is fluffed.

Her fingers are reverent as she lays on her side and extends them to lightly touch the pillow, not daring to apply any pressure that would disturb the mess.

Her inhale shudders because it isn't just someone that frequents her bed.

It's Supergirl.

It's Kara.

Her exhale is lost amidst a sleepy, breathless chuckle that is just so unbelievably… happy.

It isn't often that Lena Luthor gets to claim that sentiment for herself.

The flutter of her curtains in the breeze coming in through her open balcony door has her sitting up in the slightest, sheets held against her chest, as she looks over just in time to quietly watch Supergirl land.

Bathed in the early morning rays, hair a golden halo mussed by the caress of the winds as she flew, Supergirl is the epitome of sublime.

Her steps are soft and sure, her smile easy and wholly in love.

The coffees and (enormous) pastry bag in the hero's hand is easily abandoned in favor of a kiss that is soon – too soon – ruined by the face-splitting grin that neither one of them can determine belongs to whom.

So unbelievably happy.

And it's early enough that neither one of them needs to rush – her even less so since she is, after all, the CEO of her own company; the job came with a few perks – and she can lazily get out of bed and slip into Kara's button down left at the foot of the bed. And she can indulge in helping Supergirl take off her cape – their own little morning routine after the hero's done saving cats from trees, and directing traffic around schools – as they share soft shy kisses that almost always turn into more as they stumble into the shower.

They keep it chaste this morning, both relishing in the comfort of simply being.

And as always, Lena is struck by how easy it is, being this in love with Kara Danvers; watching her polish off more than half of the Danishes in the bag she brought home without even thinking about it coming off as odd – without needing to hide.

Even though they're still keeping their relationship hidden, Lena wanting to keep Kara to herself for as long as she can, it doesn't bother her because Kara doesn't hide from Lena.

Eventually though, their days do need to start, and they need to do so separately. And much to Lena's displeasure, Kara tells her she won't be able to make it to their planned lunch today because Supergirl has promised to make an appearance at a bake sale downtown.

But Lena's pout – as insincere as it was because come on, who's actually gonna be upset about National City's favorite hero spending a day with kids and confections? – falls away easily as she watches Kara gush because, "they were so cute, babe, all shy and scuffling their toes in these adorable Supergirl costumes as they asked me if I could come say hi, how could I not say yes? Plus, it's a bake sale; I'm going to get so many cookies! Ooh, maybe you can stop by too!"

The CEO wonders – as she watches Kara dash off with a squeak because Snapper is calling her and she's so late – if she'll ever stop feeling so strongly for the blonde.

Jess keeps her absurdly busy for the morning, as she's been instructed to do lately just so Lena can actually get work done instead of spending her days thinking about Kara – even more so whenever the TV, always open to the news, is broadcasting Supergirl fighting aliens.

That's another part of her life she may never get used to; the crippling fear watching the one she's pretty sure is the love of her life get thrown around causes, the kind of sickening worry that only comes from caring about someone so deeply you swear you'd go mad if anything happened to them.

Considering her family history with madness revolving around a Super…

She pushes the thought away because, for once, Supergirl lands on the ground on her TV screen with a smile brighter than the sun powering her, and easily kneeling to take in as many children as her arms will allow.

Lena smiles wider, discarding the file she was supposedly going over in favor of getting closer to the screen to watch.

That same smile drops away faster than the bullets Supergirl catches with her bare hands, her step faltering because she sees it happen before anyone else does – before Supergirl herself realizes what's happening.

Before Kara is screaming out in agony as she crumples to the ground.

And for that moment, watching Kara writhe in pain as poison fills her veins in green, Lena has the distant thought that she understands the clichés she's read in novels about a person's heart constricting, about air not filling their lungs, about the knot in their stomach tightening so hard something feels like it's ripping inside.

She wonders inanely as she's running out of the door, purse and phone and everything that isn't Kara forgotten, if this is the kind of pain Kara's in right now because Lena's sure she's going to die if somebody doesn't do something soon.

Her eyes stay on the giant screens located on certain buildings as they report and show live video of Kara dying and Lena can't decide if it's a blessing or a curse as she sits in the back of her car as her driver weaves through the traffic.

The relieved breath that she was about to exhale at the sight of DEO gets stuck in her throat because Alex is frantic and even Lena can see her hands trembling as the veins in Kara's neck turn green, and the blood pooling around her is growing.

The agent can't help.

Before she knows it, Lena's out of her car and running – vaguely aware of a voice in the back of her mind congratulating her on staying to shape – and even sooner she's thrashing against an officer to let her past the yellow tape.

A wave from J'onn J'onzz, who she's heard Kara talk about with glowing affection, whom she knows can read minds, has the officer releasing her and she's back to running, not even slowing when J'onn forcibly yanks Kara's sister off so Lena can actually help.

That same voice in the back of her mind – which, she realizes with a thick swallow, is Kara's loving voice – teases her about whatever her mind was screaming to get J'onn's attention.

Kara's sobbing in Detective Sawyer's lap, flinching and whimpering and desperately trying to hold on to the woman's knee, and Lena's barely holding back her own sobs as she schools her features into the strength Kara needs right now, murmuring soft reassurances of, "it'll be over soon, love, I promise, just a few more seconds…" as she slowly guides the extraction tool into Kara's wound.

It takes her two tries, but she manages to get a hold of the shard and pull it out, throwing it as far as she can as Kara gasps and trembles, Detective Sawyer continuing to soothe her with delicate fingers through her hair, and Lena aches to be the one soothing Kara like that but her hand's shaking and covered in blood.

She barely swallows down her hysteric sobs because Alex Danvers isn't doing a good job at controlling hers and Kara needs at least one of them to hold it together for just a little longer.

The rest of the day is a blur as they load Supergirl into a car to get her back to the DEO, and before she knows it, she's standing guard over Kara's prone body under sun lamps. She doesn't even know how long it's been, nor is she keeping track.

Briefly, her eyes and attention are taken away from watching Kara to look at Alex, the agent awkwardly asking her why and how and when.

Lena only looks at her long enough for Alex to get her question out before looking back at Kara, idly musing that this wasn't how they planned to tell the DEO agent about their relationship.

That their pull to each other was impossible to resist, and frankly, neither one of them wanted to resist.

That once Supergirl had Lena clutched to her chest as she flew her away from an explosion that would have been deadly even – especially – to the Girl of Steel; once Lena, even disoriented, recognized the strong arms and murmured a hoarse, "Kara?" that she was sure was lost in the wind, only for Kara to hold her tighter and slow down to a gentle glide through the air, whispering a delicate, "I've got you," against the crown of Lena's head before dropping a kiss there- well.

There was no going back after that, no denying it.

Alex isn't angry.

Alex doesn't threaten her.

Alex doesn't swear her to secrecy and make her sign an endless number of paperwork.

Alex does, however, reach over and offer her hand a weak squeeze.

It is days – days – later when they hear it; the ragged breath, and see the fluttering of lashes as tired blues blink up slowly.

And Lena would be charmed and swooning when Kara, even in her exhaustion, tries to lighten the mood by calling her and Alex her favorite girls, but she isn't.

She can't be, because her nerves are absolutely fried, and her mind has been numb and empty of everything except the memory of Kara singing Defying Gravity, of all things, around her- their kitchen before beaming that blinding smile at Lena as she headed off to be Supergirl, dramatically standing on the balcony's railing and freefalling backwards, Lena's heart always in her throat when she witnessed these stunts even as Supergirl always made it a point to shoot back up in plain sight of her, with a happy giggle and crooning the Wicked show tune.

Lena's spend days wondering if that memory, along with the ghost of Kara's quick peck to her cheek would be her last memory with the hero.

Her sobs are wracking her frame even as she feels Kara's fingers scratching her scalp weakly, body itching to curl up against Kara's side and wrap up in that beautiful red cape to protect them both from the world out to hurt them.