10. Chapter 10(1)

The shock of seeing her brother after so long, standing in her own apartment, stupefies Lena for a moment. He just grins at her, with that insufferable and boyish looking smile he has, until she finally shakes out of it.

“Lex, what the hell?” Lena exclaims as she detaches from Kara to pace toward him. “How did you get in here?”

Lex laughs, opens his arms up to hug her. “Stan likes me,” he says.

It feels good to step into Lex’s embrace. He stands just slightly taller than her and his arms feel warm and solid as he pulls her in. When they finally let go of each other, Lena leans back to really look at him.

“And what is this?” Lena tugs playfully at his beard, laughing as he does. It’s scruffy, wiry, and far away from the occasional Sunday evening stubble she’s seen him with on occasion. 

“Don’t you like it?” He puffs his chest up a bit, chin lifting as he asks it. “I think it looks distinguished.”

“It looks unkempt,” Lena corrects, giving him a look that makes him laugh.

He shrugs, unaffected as always by her disapproval, and his eyes dart over her shoulder, grin only widening at what he sees.

When Lena registers what – or who – that is, she goes a little cold again, unable to fight the wave of anxiety. But she backs up a bit, and Kara must step forward, because they bump into each other lightly, Kara’s palm steadying Lena by the small of her back.

“Kara Danvers,” Lex greets, voice full of delight and jest.

“Mr. Luthor,” Kara returns, sounding some mixture of overly official and amused. When she turns to look at Kara there’s a hint of a smile on her lips.

“So formal,” Lex teases, eyes wagging up and down when he looks at Lena. She feels her heartrate start to kick off against her will as Lex continues to just look at the two of them. Kara’s hand on her back is feeling all too hot as the seconds tick by.

“Good to see you back in town,” Kara says politely, as though Lex hasn’t just caught them climbing each other in Lena’s entryway. Lex’s eyes narrow just the slightest, a critical look taking hold for a moment, though his smile never falters.

“So, this is really a thing,” Lex says, gesturing between the two of them with the hand still holding his tumbler of whiskey. It’s not a question really, more like a statement, and though Lena knows it to be true, her cheeks flush. “A thing thing.”

On instinct, she deflects with a casual, “What are you talking about?”

Lex laughs and though Lena doesn’t look up at her, she can hear Kara laugh softly as well. Traitor.

She knows it’s ridiculous. They’d been steps away from tearing each other’s clothes off just seconds ago, but still. 

“You and the Superstar,” he clarifies kindly, a look of pure delight in his eyes as he looks between them. “I’d heard all the fun rumors, but seeing it in the flesh is certainly illuminating.”

“Lex,” Lena says quietly, suddenly full of insecurity. The very real prospect of being outed – even if just to her brother – is twisting in her gut in a way she’d not felt when they’d just been out in the hallway.

But her brother waves off her wariness in that easy way he has, his expression open and casual. “I think it’s great,” he says, smiling at them both. “I mean, I’d suspected as much before with all the pictures.”

“The pictures?” Lena asks, arching a brow.

Lex laughs. “You’re not as sneaky as you think, Sis. The Internet’s sharks have been circling you two for a few months now,” he tells them, wagging his finger as if to scold a small child. “Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to bill you for what it cost to keep some of those shots out of the public eye.”

Lena feels her eyes go wide, Kara shuffling closer to her. “What...shots?”

Lex just laughs again. “Come on,” he says, walking towards her kitchen like this is his apartment instead of hers. “Let’s have a drink and catch up. We have a lot to talk about.”

He waltzes out of view, but Lena feels rooted to the spot, watching him disappear towards her wine cooler with wide eyes. “What’s happening?” she murmurs, almost to herself. She jumps when Kara answers her.

“I should go, right?” Kara says, though her hand remains solid against Lena’s back. “Let you catch up with your brother.”

The thought of Kara leaving her alone right now tugs her brain into full working order. Even if it’s just her brother, she feels a bit steadier having Kara nearby. Turning, Lena hooks her finger in the waistband of Kara’s pants and looks up at her with narrowed eyes. “You’re not leaving.”

“You should have some time alone with him,” Kara argues, but she doesn’t move. Just acquiesces to the pull of Lena’s finger to bring their bodies closer together. It’s funny to have someone so strong bend to her will without argument. Nice because Kara’s eyes are focused on hers, amusement sparking in them even as they dart away towards the kitchen for a moment. “I don’t want to intrude.” 

“You’re just trying to run away from whatever it is he has to say to us, you coward,” Lena accuses, but she smiles a little at the end of it. The way Kara flushes just the slightest makes Lena want to kiss her.

“I’m trying to be respectful,” Kara insists, but she doesn’t make a move to leave, obeys the way Lena’s finger stays tucked in the waistband of her pants. 

“Thanks,” Lena says sincerely as she presses a fleeting kiss to Kara’s jaw. “But we’re facing this one together.”

“You sound like we’re headed into a firing squad.”

The sound of Lex popping a bottle open in the kitchen floats over them. “Time to face the music, lovebirds,” he calls out. “Get in here, Sis, or I’m calling Mom.” 

Lena sighs, steels herself and reaches out to fix the collar of Kara’s shirt. “Welcome to the family,” she jokes, but Kara’s grin is so genuine she kisses her once, twice, three times, before tugging her into the kitchen.

--

They drink a bottle of champagne – or at least Lena and Lex do – while they talk. Lex catches Lena up, albeit briefly, on his time away. There’s a lot of vague handwaving and don’t worry about its that make Lena want to roll her eyes, but she decides not to pester him just yet.

It’s nice, in a way Lena hadn’t anticipated, to sit in her kitchen with Kara and her brother. It feels normal and warm and it’s a reminder that Lena hadn’t thought to consider all the benefits of bringing her relationship with Kara out into the open. She’d been far too focused on the negatives. Negatives that Lex had a hand in preventing, apparently.

“It shouldn’t be all that surprising,” Lex says, looking ponderous while he rubs his beard and explains the kind of paparazzi photos he’d somehow encountered during his time away. “You’re both allegedly attractive, wealthy, so on, so forth. People take an interest in that sort of thing. Present company included.”

Kara makes an amused humming sound into her glass of water that Lena cuts a glare to. The I told you so is as clear as day and Lena reflects on Kara saying the exact same thing just days ago in the front seat of her car. 

“But the first time I ever really had to do any work to prevent anyone asking serious questions was at that infernal musical with the rapping,” Lex says. Lena can feel Kara’s body coil in defense of Hamilton, and reaches out to press her hand to Kara’s on the counter before she gets a chance to derail the entire conversation.

“So you’ve known this whole time,” Lena says. 

“Someone like Kara stops spreading the love all around on her nightly escapades and their most dedicated fans take notice.” Lex shoots Kara a look, lips quirking up. “No offense, Danvers. 

“Lex,” Lena chastises. But Kara shifts closer and laughingly interjects with a casual, “It’s fine.” 

“Oh come on, Lena,” Lex says. “You know it’s true.” 

Lena’d rather not acknowledge his point, true as it may be. “Don’t be rude.” 

“Is it rude if it’s just fact?” Lex arches a brow and makes a show of looking down his nose at her. 

“Yes,” Lena answers at the same time Kara says, “No.” 

Lena clicks her tongue and elbows Kara softly, glaring at her brother. “You should remember your manners,” she scolds him. 

Scoffing into a laugh, Lex shakes his head. “What? It’s not as if any one of us is a stranger to romantic exploits. What about that time in Singapore with you and the tattoo -” 

“Lex,” Lena warns lowly, feeling her cheeks start to flush at the memory he’s digging up. 

“Okay, what about when we went to Mexico and that lady with the foot fetish -” 

“No,” Lena interrupts, coughing on a sip of champagne. “Kara doesn’t need to hear about that.” 

“I don’t know,” Kara says with a shrug, smiling at the two of them. “Sounds interesting.” 

“See, Lena,” Lex says, but Lena just rolls her eyes. 

“Shut up, Lex,” she says, taking another heavy sip of her drink and trying to glare at both Lex and Kara at the same time. 

“Just saying,” Lex says, looking teasing and nice and playful, and Lena’s just - happy, strangely, to have two of her favorite people in the room at the same time.

It’s easy to get caught up in the moment, in the warm feeling of having Kara at her back while they listen to the animated way Lex always tells stories. Thankfully, the conversation turns towards a discussion of the Lakehawks, a topic Lena is more content to sit back and listen to while Kara takes the lead. They go over some of the developments in the franchise since Lex’s been gone and Kara takes him through her injury and recovery process. 

As Kara tells him about how the team is doing, how Eve did her work in filling in during Kara’s absence, Lex grows contemplative and leans back in his stool a bit. 

“You know…we should do a family dinner,” he says, playing with his beard as he talks. “With the team.”

Lena arches a brow, unsure what he means, but Kara lets out a soft laugh. “We haven’t had one of those in forever,” she says, 

“What does that mean?” Lena asks, eyeing the gleeful look on Lex’s face with trepidation.

“We’ll have the team over for dinner,” Lex answers, reaching for the bottle of champagne between them. “Here.”

“Here?!” Lena can’t help but exclaim, glancing behind her at Kara to see if they’re joking. Kara places her palm again on Lena’s back, but otherwise doesn’t comment, her expression caught between amused and bland.

“My apartment isn’t quite ready for guests, what with its lengthy disuse,” Lex says, haughtily. “Come on, Lena, it’ll be fun. We used to do them all the time, don’t you remember?”

Lena doesn’t. She’s pretty sure if she’d had dinner with the entire Lakehawks at Lex’s apartment…she’d remember.

“She never came to those,” Kara answers for her, leaning an elbow on the counter to prop herself up against it. When Lena sends her a quizzical look, Kara just shrugs and adds, “What? I think I’d remember if you’d been there.”

It makes Lena’s cheeks feel a tad flush, but Lex laughs and moves past it. “Well, we’re long overdue and I think we should have one. It’d be a fun way to reintroduce myself as well.”

“Maybe,” Lena answers, leaning into the way Kara continues to rub at her back. Something about the moment feels like a novelty, every pass of Kara’s thumb across her spine making her feel soft. It’s perhaps the leading factor into why she feels herself relenting to Lex’s ideas.

“After we beat the Skippers,” Kara suggests.

Lex laughs again, picking up his champagne glass and lifting it in Kara’s direction. “I’ve missed your confidence, Danvers,” he says. “You’ll fit into this family just fine.”

--

Lex leaves, eventually. Finally. And she and Kara are left alone, staring at the closed door like neither of them are really sure of what just happened. 

“So, your brother’s back,” Kara murmurs softly.

Lena hums affirmatively and leans heavily into Kara’s side, grateful when Kara brings her arm around her to keep her there. “Quite the surprise.”

“A good one though, right?”

“Yeah,” Lena nods. “A good one.”

“How are you feeling about…” Kara pauses long enough that Lena looks up at her, eyebrows raising. “How do you feel knowing that he knows?”

Lena’s brow stays lifted until she realizes what Kara’s referring to and she relaxes, unsure how to explain the ups and downs of how she feels about it.

“It’s a bit nice, I suppose,” she settles on, shrugging a shoulder but feeling Kara relax just the smallest bit at her words. “You’re right, people are going to find out.”

“He seemed fine with it.”

“As if Lex is anyone to judge,” Lena says wryly, pulling away from Kara and moving to the empty champagne bottles and glasses in the kitchen to clean them away. Kara ambles after her.

“I guess that’s true,” Kara replies with a laugh. 

“He’s probably more thrilled than he’s letting on, truth be told,” Lena says, handing a champagne glass off to Kara so that she can set it in the dishwasher. “He used to talk about you like you were the second coming, riding in on your horse to save the Lakehawks.” 

Kara laughs, leaning a hip against the kitchen counter and watching as Lena fiddles with the controls of her dishwasher. “Well, sure, but that’s about basketball.” 

There’s something uncharacteristically shy about Kara’s posture, her hands crossing over her chest when Lena straightens and the dishwasher starts its cycle, the low hum of it wafting between them. “It was about you,” she clarifies with a soft smile. 

“And how good I am at basketball,” Kara adds, shrugging a shoulder. “Which, I am. Obviously. But that’s not about like…” 

“About what?” Lena asks when nothing else is forthcoming. She shuffles in closer to Kara, happy when it forces Kara’s arms to relax. 

“I don’t know,” Kara says, eyes darting away now. “It’s different now. I’m like your...girlfriend. Or whatever.” 

Lena catches on at that. Her heart warming at the faint flush in Kara’s cheeks and the nervous way she chews at her lower lip. “Or whatever,” Lena repeats, teasing and stepping in even closer until Kara brings her arms up to embrace her. 

“You know what I mean,” Kara says, a hint of a whine on the last word. 

Lena enjoys the strong, solid feel of Kara’s body when she presses in and remembers quite suddenly what they’d been about to do when they’d first walked into the apartment. “I didn’t think that would be something you were worried about.” 

“I wouldn’t say worry,” Kara says with a put-upon show of dismissiveness. 

“He liked you,” she reassures Kara, pressing a kiss to Kara’s jaw. 

Kara hums at the pressure, lets her hands find Lena’s hips and the small of her back. “That’s good, I guess,” she says and Lena laughs. 

The champagne is making Lena feel loose and relaxed, the ebbing of adrenaline from her brother discovering them making her sag into Kara’s embrace and the added feel and scent of Kara has Lena’s fingers creeping in between them to play at the buttons of Kara’s shirt. 

“You played well today, you know,” Lena says, looking up into Kara’s amused blue eyes. “I don’t know if I mentioned.”

“Thanks,” Kara laughs, taking the change of subject in stride. 

“Tired?” 

A smirk plays at Kara’s lips, her arm moving to wrap solidly around Lena’s waist until she’s lifting her just a bit off the ground and into Kara’s body. “Not especially,” she murmurs, tone low enough that it runs down Lena’s spine. 

“Good,” Lena whispers back, arms lifting around Kara’s neck and lips pressing forward. 

--

Jack calls her in the morning sounding rough and exhausted. “Your brother’s back in town,” is his only greeting and Lena makes an amused sound, curious how Jack would know that.

“Yes, I know. He was here last night,” she tells him, setting her cup of coffee down. “How did you find out?”

“Well a bit of a warning would have been nice, love,” Jack grumbles, sounding severely in need of a breakfast cocktail and a plate of bacon. “He showed up here sometime around midnight and dragged me out.”

Lena laughs imagining it, hoping Lex was at least discreet. Considering she’s yet to see his picture plastered across any of the news sites this morning, he must have been. “That explains why you sound as if you’ve swallowed a bag of cotton balls.”

“Don’t mock me,” Jack complains. “Not unless you’re planning on bringing me coffee and getting me breakfast.”

“Surely you have ways of acquiring that that don’t involve me.”

“Sure, but how are we going to debrief the great return of Lex Luthor if you don’t come over here and buy me eggs and toast?”

Kara saunters in from the bedroom at that and Lena’s attention gets drawn to the way she’s pulling a shirt on over her head, still only in her light blue Calvins as she strides towards the pot of coffee on the counter with a yawn. There’s sun streaming in through the blinds of Lena’s living room, Kara’s hair is in a messy ponytail, and she starts pulling a mug from the cabinet with her eyes still half-closed.

It’s such a disarming sight that Lena forgets to answer Jack’s question. “Hello? Lena?” 

“Yeah, sorry,” Lena says, shaking her head and rolling her eyes when Kara raises a questioning brow her direction, smirk and all. “I have meetings this morning, I can’t just blow them off because you don’t know how to drink responsibly.” 

“I do know how,” Jack complains. “It was your brother that’s the problem.” 

Kara’s leaned up against the counter now, observing Lena as she sips at her fresh cup of coffee. 

“You should learn how to say no to him.” 

“Easier said than done,” Jack says, more of a groan than anything else and Lena takes pity on him. 

“Can you be presentable in thirty minutes?” 

“Do I have to shower?” 

“Yes,” Lena says with a laugh, enjoying the way Kara smiles at her over the rim of her coffee mug. It feels quiet and easy and Lena wants to bottle the feeling for safekeeping. 

“Then make it an hour.” 

“I’ll send George,” Lena tells him and then promptly hangs up on the sound of his laughter. 

“Jack?” Kara asks, setting her mug down and moving towards Lena to kiss her good morning. Her hands slip along Lena’s waist and grip there.

Lena hums into the contact and nods. “It seems Lex went to see him after us last night.” 

“Busy man,” Kara says, her hand slipping underneath Lena’s t-shirt at her lower back. It’s not necessarily sexual, but comfortable. “So you’re off to soak up his hangover?”

“It seems that way,” Lena sighs. “Do you have practice today?” 

“And a walkthrough and like ten meetings,” Kara says, pulling an annoyed face. “You’d think we’d get the day after we close out an important series off, but nope. Cat will probably have us in the gym all week.”

Lena’s hands have traveled of their own accord up under Kara’s shirt, sitting lightly against the relaxed muscles of her abdomen. “Do you have to be there soon?” 

There’s something about the soft way Kara looks and feels right now that makes Lena want to wrap her up and tumble back into bed. Jack can wait.  

“I have some time,” Kara says, voice lowering with the slide of her lips into a smirk. She’s clearly caught onto Lena’s wavelength. The palm at Lena’s lower back spreads out, fingers reaching across the warm expanse of her skin there. “Why? Something in mind?” 

Lena shrugs a shoulder, playing at being coy and smiling at the amused crinkle it pulls in Kara’s brow. “Just curious.” 

“Oh, really?” Kara arches a brow far too attractively and pulls Lena onto her feet by only the strength of the hand she already has at her back. It’s swift and powerful and Lena’s brain drops low in her body. 

They don’t make it all the way to the bedroom, but spend the rest of their time together in the sunlight streaming through the living room windows. Kara ends up running ten minutes behind schedule, racing out of Lena’s apartment in a tumble of clothes and messy hair. Even still, she takes the time to bend over the back of the couch and press a solid kiss to Lena’s lips, smiling into the pressure and whispering her goodbyes. 

--

After taking the quickest of showers and answering the five we’re waiting for you and one I just saw Kara leave so why aren’t you down here texts from Jack, Lena slides into the back seat of her car to find Jack lounging against the seats with sunglasses and a baseball cap on. George merely sends her an amused smile in the rearview mirror before pulling away from the curb. 

“You look awful,” she greets, flicking at the brim of his hat. 

He flips her off, but sits up a bit. “You sound too chipper. It’s annoying. Who gave you the right?” 

“I’m deeply sorry my personal happiness is an inconvenience.” 

He laughs, but his smile turns into something genuine even though she can’t see his eyes. “I’ll be sure to send Kara a fruit basket for doing my best friend so well.” 

Lena spares a glance for George as he maneuvers through early morning traffic. Jack is being casual about it, and George knows, but it feels like every time anyone brings up her and Kara she has to be on high alert. She tries to fight back the instinct to tell Jack to shut up, or hit him, and just breathe.

“Maybe I’m just happy to be having breakfast with you,” Lena teases, a haughty lift of her chin.

Jack scoffs. “As if.” 

Swatting his leg, but laughing, she changes the subject. “So, where did Lex take you last night to put you in such a state?”

“I don’t even remember it all,” Jack says, groaning and pulling his hat down lower on his face as sunlight glides over them in the car. “There were just so many shots, Lena. So many.”

“I could have used a few of those myself,” she jokes. “He caught Kara and I in a compromising position last night at my apartment.” 

Jack freezes and pulls his sunglasses down to observe her, eyes puffy and bloodshot. “You’re fucking having me on.” 

“He was there when Kara and I got home and we sort of came through the door wrapped up in each other,” Lena explains. Jack snorts, then coughs, and then just holds his hand over his mouth for a few seconds, looking like he might puke before he can open his mouth again. 

“Christ,” Jack whispers. “How did it go?”

“Fine,” she says with a shrug of her shoulder. “It seems he wasn’t all that surprised. Apparently a few paparazzi photos had already made their way to his hideaway during his time on the lam.” 

“Like, scandalous photos?” Jack asks, waggling his eyebrows suggestively enough that Lena digs her knuckles into his thigh until he helps. “Okay, fuck, sorry,” he says, though he’s laughing and not sounding sorry much at all. “Did he seem okay with it? How was Kara?” 

She thinks for a second of how calm she had felt, Lex and Kara chattering about the Lakehawks tactics this year, Kara’s steady presence behind her and Lex’s familiar one in front of her. How Lex had never once acted like he was judging them, and how Kara hadn’t run away even when she had the chance before or after Lex sat them down. She gives a slow shrug to Jack and can’t help her smile.

“They were fine,” Lena says. “It went great, even.”

“Your smile is disgusting. Love really is affecting you for the worst,” Jack says, though he smiles anyway. 

“Shut up, Jack,” Lena says, rolling her eyes.

“Sure, sure,” Jack says. 

--

The promos for the Lakehawks-Skippers Conference Final Series market it as if it’s the championship series instead of the semi-finals.

“That’s because everyone knows the West is so much better than the East,” Kara explains, eating snap peas on Lena’s couch. “Not that random things couldn’t happen, but it’s pretty much a guarantee that whoever wins the West will win the championship.”

“Really?” Lena finds herself a bit intrigued, curled up next to Kara on the couch, feet tucked under her. She’s going over the last board meeting notes while Kara lounges and snacks. Work has been more of a chore recently as she’s started to think about how to bring Lex back into the fold, but it’s not so arduous to go through it while Kara sits next to her snacking and talking about basketball. It’s funny how comfortable she finds it, having another person so casually in her space.

Kara hums, throws another snap pea in her mouth. “Yeah, I’m not really worried about playing the Grenadiers or the Wonders. We can for sure beat either of them, no problem. But the Skips hate us and are good, and we’ve knocked them out of the playoffs for the last like, five years.”

On the screen, a replay of Kara’s injury plays and Lena winces, finding the clip to be in poor taste. Watching Kara’s body hit the hardwood flat on her back, twitch on impact like an electrical shock’s gone through her, and then roll over sends Lena immediately back to the panic that had beset her seeing it in person. But Kara just laughs softly, seemingly more distanced from the memory than Lena. “There’s that, too.”

“I hate watching that,” Lena comments, mostly under her breath as they watch a quick post-practice interview with Leslie Willis replace the video of Kara’s injury. Leslie is pretty, in a mean-looking way, tall and with strong shoulders. Lena’s seen enough of her play to understand her gameplay as a bit more bruising than Kara’s or really any of the Lakehawks’ apart from maybe Maggie. 

“Feels like forever ago,” Kara says, shuffling sideways on the couch with her bowl of snap peas and throwing an arm around Lena’s shoulders. It seems almost unconscious, because Kara keeps talking. “I wonder how much it’ll affect things. Should be interesting.”

“Like someone might try to injure you again?” Lena asks, setting her tablet to the side and adjusting until she’s pressed against Kara’s side fully. 

“Siobhan wasn’t trying to injure me,” Kara says, raising her eyebrows at Lena and laughing at her skeptical look. “She really wasn’t.” 

“I guess,” Lena grumbles, unable to keep the memory of Kara twisting midair out of her mind. 

“You could accuse Leslie of that kind of stuff, but Siobhan is a little - I mean she visited me after and apologized. Brought me a box of donuts and everything.” 

Lena hums, watches as Leslie answers questions on the television in front of them. The reporter seems to be asking a long list of rote, predictable questions, ending with a classic, how are you feeling about going up against your old teammate Kara Danvers now that she’s returned from injury? Are you guys worried about that at all? 

Leslie makes a scoffing sound, shrugging a shoulder and turning a laughing smile down at the reporter. “Worried about Kara Danvers? Last I checked there are five players in a basketball lineup.” 

The reporter takes the deflection in stride, laughs at Leslie’s little joke, but persists at the question with an added, “Has anything changed in your preparation knowing Kara will be back in that lineup?” 

It’s clear Leslie is irritated by the question, her brow setting as her hands find her hips.

“Honestly, I don’t think much about her,” she says, jaw tight. “Everyone thinks she’s such a great player off and on the court, but I don’t really care. Last time I saw her on a basketball court, she was being stretchered off of it. It seems she’s at her best on her back.”

Leslie punctuates the jab with a little smirk, the implication clear, and the reporter seems shocked for a moment, but manages to recover, trying to steer the conversation back on topic. 

“The Lakehawks seem fairly confident now that she’s returned. Do you have anything to say about -” 

“Kara Danvers can come meet me on the floor in game one and I’ll do my talking there,” Leslie interrupts. “And it’ll take more than a stretcher this time.” 

Without saying much else, Leslie turns away from the reporter to walk down the team tunnel and away.  

Lena blinks at the television as it turns back to the anchor desk and fights the acrid taste of indignation on the back of her tongue. “Did she really just say that?” 

“Like I said,” Kara says with a laugh, popping another snap pea in her mouth. “Should be interesting.” 

--

Leslie’s attack starts a cavalcade of dialogue in the three days leading up to the first game of the series. Lena gets called into a meeting with James and J’onn that involves developing a party line the team can stick to. Between that and the meetings regarding Lex at Luthor Corp it feels like all Lena does these days is talk to her PR teams and lawyers. 

Eventually they issue a teamwide press release that’s filled with boilerplate reprimanding like as an organization, we do not condone personal attacks, nor do we endorse violence and unfair play. Both Lex and Jack send her endless memes and even Lana gets in on the fun. Cat gives a press conference that more vociferously attacks Leslie’s rhetoric around Kara’s injury in particular.

“I’ve never in my life wished for any player to be injured. I was in the hospital with Kara. She couldn’t feel her legs,” Cat says. “That’s beyond basketball. I understand that trash talking is a part of our game and it’s a great confidence builder for those who need it - but I’m disappointed in Leslie.”

At the next Lakehawks media availability, it’s all anyone can talk about. 

“I’m not exactly a fan of people attacking Kara or her character,” Alex says. “What do I think of what she had to say? It was asinine and we’ll see her on Thursday.”

“I never played with her, and I never really noticed playing against her,” Maggie says. “A lot of bark, not a lot of bite.”

“Leslie feels how she feels,” is Kara’s quote, thrown with a loose shrug, but she makes unnerving eye contact with the camera as she adds. ”But if she wants to come for me, she better not miss.” 

--

Having Lex back in town is certainly a change to say the least. Lena hadn’t realized just how much she’d gotten used to his absence in all things until he’s suddenly back, lounging about her office like he’s contemplating changing the carpets. She and the board are still working out the specifics of his role, and Lex seems content to let them hash it out while he relaxes.

“I hope you were careful coming up here,” Lena comments absently when Lex nearly tips over a potted plant she has sitting on a table near her couch. 

“Of course I was,” he scoffs, looking around the room. “When do you think I’ll get my office back?”

“Never,” Lena answers quickly, not taking her eyes off the e-mail in front of her.

Lex scoffs, but Lena ignores him apart from a roll of her eyes. “I’m still on payroll,” he argues.

“For now.”

Laughing softly, he sits up from the couch and strolls across the room to drop into a chair across from her at her desk. “Speaking of,” he starts, and Lena does glance up at him then, the light tone he has sounding ominous. “When are we going to talk about the Lakehawks?”

She arches a brow. “Pardon?”

“The Lakehawks,” he repeats, steepling his fingers together. “And the Harriers, I suppose.”

“What about the Lakehawks?”

“The ownership situation,” he answers. “Now that I’m back.”

“I own the Lakehawks,” Lena says, abandoning her work completely to give him her full attention. “There is no situation.”

It strikes her momentarily how protective and possessive she feels over a team she wanted nothing to do with months ago. And if she’s completely honest, the change in heart isn’t completely due to her relationship with Kara. She appreciates the organization for far more than just Kara, now.

“There will be one when you and the face of the franchise go public,” Lex says matter-of-factly, wiggling his fingers annoyingly over face of the franchise. “Isn’t that what you’ve been so worried about this entire time?”

It’s irritating that even though Lex has been gone for the entirety of her journey with Kara, he still sees straight to the heart of her like it’s written on her forehead. It’s an annoying big brother trait.

“I’ll cross that bridge when we come to it,” she says though her brain starts to move through the realization that they’re coming closer and closer to that bridge every day and she has no plan other than to just weather the storm and hope for the best. Absently, she rubs at her brow.

“Why put it off when I have such a simple solution to your problem?”

He has that smug look about him that makes Lena want to kick him in the shins, but she doesn’t give him the pleasure of reaction. Instead, she affects as unimpressed a look as she can muster and leans casually back in her desk chair. “Oh, do tell, dear brother. What genius have you concocted?”

“Give the team back to me,” he says simply with a flair of a gesture that looks ridiculous. 

She blinks a moment before barking out a laugh. “You’re not serious.”

“Think about it, Lena,” he says and when he leans forward to prop his elbows on his knees, she can tell he’s not joking. “Relinquishing full ownership will do a lot to soften the blow of going public with the superstar.”

He’s right in some respect. It’s not like this hasn’t occurred to her before – even if giving the team back to Lex certainly hadn’t. But she can’t figure out how to explain how much she doesn’t want to give the team up, how she’s come to love the Lakehawks and all their quirks. The thought of not being a part of it anymore…

“It doesn’t have to be a full transfer,” he adds. “We can be co-owners and we’ll just restructure the agreement, make it clear you have no hand in personnel decisions. I’m not trying to take anything away from you.”

He puts his hands up, his expression genuine and Lena can’t deny the offer is attractive. He’s right. Even though it’s not a full shift, it might be enough to assuage concerns over Lena’s involvement in both the Lakehawks and with Kara. It brings Lex back into the business without really involving him in the company and the story of that alone might eclipse anything that leaks about her and Kara.

“We don’t have any immediate plans to go public,” she says softly, sinking down a bit into her chair.

“All the better. Do it now and it won’t look like that’s the reason.”

“People will still think that,” Lena argues, making an attempt at due diligence.

“You can’t control what people think, Lena,” Lex says, shrugging a shoulder. “I know that better than anyone. But you can control whether or not you let that run your life.”

Lena regards him a moment, lets the easy way he looks back at her steady the nerves in her chest. It feels good to have him back, tackling problems as a team like they used to. “Okay,” she says, sitting up and rolling her eyes at the gleeful smile that one word produces. “I’ll talk to my legal team.”

Lex eyes her for a second longer, a calculating look about him. It reminds Lena of playing chess with him when they were younger, when she was better than him but still got intimidated into thinking he knew better. 

“That was easier than I thought it’d be,” Lex says. “Must be love.”

It’s a surprisingly serious thought, one that cools the annoyance in her chest. It’s not as if it’s a foreign idea - Lena knows she loves Kara, but to be talking about it like this in her office flips something in her stomach. 

“Surely you didn’t think it would be that difficult to take a basketball team away from me,” she says in jest, clicking her tongue at him.

“Oh, please. You’re giving up business control over an entity. Doesn’t matter if it’s a basketball team or something else. I know how you are about these things.” He cards his fingers together, crossing a leg over his knee. “You must love her quite a bit to give something like that up.”

She doesn’t have much of an answer for that. He’s right. The fact that she’s letting a personal relationship affect a business decision is a sobering thought and even though she’s long ago confronted the feelings she has for Kara and just how serious they are, Lex’s stare makes her feel exposed. 

It reminds Lena unbidden of standing in an elevator across from Kara and hearing the desperate I’ll put in for a trade resound loudly in the small space. How it had felt like a burn on her skin for days.

“You couldn’t tell that from all those photos you saw?” Lena asks, clearing her throat. Lex snorts, shrugging and adjusting the collar of his shirt.

“I could tell a lot of things, believe me, but the question of feelings was left unresolved,” Lex says and then pauses, a soft smile on her face that pulls a matching one across her own. “You know, I missed you.”

“I missed you too,” Lena says, but she rolls her eyes at the end of it, her cheeks feeling warm. 

There’s a small moment of silence.

“Great, that’s settled,” he says, slapping his thighs with his palms and standing. “This calls for a drink.”

“It’s barely one in the afternoon, Lex,” Lena chastises as he strides towards the small wet bar on the side of her office.

“All the more reason,” is his only answer as he inspects the decanter on the counter.

--

The day before the game, they’re lounging about in Kara’s bedroom, SportsCenter playing in the background, volume low. Lena’s stretched back against the pillows of Kara’s bed dividing her attention between her phone, the television and the mobility routine Kara’s putting herself through at the foot of the bed. 

As Kara pulls into a particular stretch that has her lunging forward and reaching for the ceiling - a move that exposes the play of muscle in her biceps and quads - Lena refocuses on the television lest she interrupt Kara’s routine. 

There’s an old package of shots playing to promote the saga of the Lakehawks and Skippers rivalry. After Leslie’s comments, the footage of Leslie as a Lakehawk seems particularly relevant. A clip of Leslie jumping on Kara’s back enthusiastically as they celebrate a championship in the locker room plays and it’s so jarring, Lena has to comment. “It’s a tad bizarre to think of you two as friends.” 

It pulls Kara’s attention from her stretch and she adjusts her glasses to look at the screen. The footage has moved on to a quick clip of Kara spraying champagne and beer over Leslie’s head. “It was a long time ago,” she murmurs as the screen moves on to highlights of the two of them on the court - a particularly savage pick-and-roll in which Leslie dunks over a Wonders player’s head. 

Though they’d talked about this briefly, more than once, Kara’d never really gone into detail about what went down between her and Leslie. Nothing more than a she wanted more from me than I could give her. 

The screen shifts from old footage to the much newer interview in which Leslie all but threatens Kara with another injury in between accusing her of being a player.

“What exactly happened to make her hate you so much?”

Kara stands up completely and moves to the bed, scooting to sit next to Lena and shrugging. “I don’t know.” Lena shoots her a look that makes Kara laugh and insist, “Seriously. I think I’ve already proven to you I’m terrible at understanding emotions. Especially when they involve my own.” 

Lena chuckles, rolling her eyes and shoving a little at Kara’s shoulder. “Come on, you have to have some idea. I feel like you’re not telling me something.” 

Kara pulls her leg up and rests her arm on her knee, regarding Lena with an honest expression. “I really don’t know. I knew she was mad when I like - when I made it clear I thought we were just having fun,” Kara explains, fumbling a bit around the words. “But that was two years ago,” Kara says, her head dropping back a bit in exasperation. 

Lena shifts down in bed, laughing at Kara’s expression. “Perhaps you’re harder to get over than you realize,” she says, pulling Kara down with her until they’re settling under the sheets. 

Kara shoots her a doubtful expression that Lena can’t help but find endearing. “There wasn’t really anything to get over.” 

“According to you,” Lena points out trying very hard not to remember the feeling of Kara assuring her I don’t have feelings for you - it’s an incredibly distant memory now. Tempered by the shift in their relationship and the warm feeling of Kara’s body scooting closer to hers, but there’s still a pang there that Lena’s not sure will ever leave. 

“She threw like four pairs of shoes at my head when I told her I didn’t think we were dating and now years later she’s threatening to put me on a stretcher,” Kara says dryly, slipping further down in the bed. “Kind of an overreaction, don’t you think?” 

Lena hums neutrally and shifts down next to Kara, accepting the invitation into Kara’s body when Kara lifts her arm to bring her in. Her leg shifts over Kara’s and her cheek settles against Kara’s shoulder. “Some broken hearts don’t mend, I guess,” Lena says quietly, watching the program on the television shift to a stat comparison between the duos of Kara - Alex and Leslie - Siobhan. 

It’s quiet for a moment, nothing but the low sounds of a sports announcer talking about Alex’s shooting percentage outside the arc filtering across the room. Lena’s palm slides across Kara’s abs, stroking absently over the fabric of her shirt. 

“I’m sorry if I broke your heart,” Kara says softly, her hand stroking down Lena’s spine. 

Lena picks her head up enough to look at Kara, brow raising in surprise. “You didn’t,” she says immediately, not meaning to imply otherwise - true as it might be. It’s not really how she’s ever thought of it. It was her choices that ended their fling, not any of Kara’s, and if her heart may have been broken, she can only blame herself. 

“You sure?” Kara says skeptically, eyes squinting a bit as if the answer is on Lena’s face. 

Hand travelling up under Kara’s shirt until it can press against warm skin, Lena lets out a little chuckle, warm and reassuring. “I didn’t throw any shoes at you, did I?” 

It makes Kara laugh, a rumble of a sound that Lena feels under her hand. “I guess not.” 

Lena watches her carefully for a moment, thinks of pushing Kara away in an elevator ages ago. “I’m sorry if I broke yours,” she says, and after a beat, Kara laughs. 

“You should be,” she says, full of tease as she captures Lena’s hand where it’s roaming up her stomach and shifts so they’re facing each other. “You should be really sorry.” 

Lena rolls her eyes and makes to move away but Kara keeps her in place. “How ever will I make it up to you?” 

In a shift of strong movement, Kara pulls Lena under her, maneuvers until she’s slipping between Lena’s legs and pressing a solid kiss to Lena’s neck. “I have a few ideas, actually.” 

“Is that so?” Lena arches her neck, accepting the pressure of Kara’s mouth there easily and feels heat pull up her gut when Kara presses down against her. 

Kara doesn’t answer other than slipping her hand up Lena’s side, dragging her shirt with it. The lips Kara has pressed up against Lena’s neck slip into a smile. It shouldn’t be enough for Lena to squirm, but she’s moving anyway. 

“Kara,” she breathes out softly, arching her hips up into Kara’s body. 

“Shhh,” Kara murmurs, trailing up Lena’s jaw until they’re kissing, Kara’s body rocking downward enough to make Lena’s skin break out in tingles. 

It feels good to let Kara lead the way, stripping them of their clothing and spreading Lena out across the bed. Kara’s mouth tripping down her skin and her hands pressing just so, before they slide open the bedside drawer. 

It feels even better when Kara’s hand closes over Lena’s mouth to silence a particularly loud whine just as Kara’s hips snap forward violently and choke all the sound from Lena’s throat. 

Lena feels herself walk the line of overwhelmed, overstimulated, and strung out. Kara plays her body as expertly as she commands a basketball game, pressing all the right buttons and pulling all the right strings. It’s hot and fast and makes Lena wonder how she ever thought for a second she could give this up. Kara knows Lena’s every tic, knows how to make Lena feel too much and nothing at all.

“Good?” Kara asks, panting the word into the space between their mouths, one hand holding Lena’s hip down into the bed as she fucks into her, rolling her hips so perfectly that Lena feels her eyes roll backward. 

“Fuck,” is all Lena can manage, hating and loving the smile it pulls across Kara’s lips. 

“Tell me it feels good, baby,” Kara whispers, sending heat down Lena’s spine, making the stretch between her legs burn deliciously when Kara pushes in deep. 

Lena doesn’t do as she’s told, just picks her neck up so their lips push together. Kara lets the kiss go on a few seconds before pulling away and propping herself up on her hands. “Tell me,” Kara orders again, putting her hand lightly at Lena’s neck when Lena attempts to stretch back up for another kiss. 

It thrills Lena more than she wants it to, the pressure at her throat making her clit throb and ache. “It feels good,” Lena breathes out, hips opening more to invite Kara in and enjoying the play of muscle and strength in the body hovered over hers. 

Kara has a look of intense focus that makes Lena squirm. It’s nothing new. Not really. Kara’s always seemed to be perfectly in tune with Lena’s body, even the first time they slept together. But there’s something now, with the weight of everything that’s happened, that makes Lena feel seen in a way she never has before. 

It’s too much, just for a moment. The significance of it pricks heat behind her eyes, but thankfully Kara drops down to kiss her, the hand at her neck dropping between them to push any sort of rational thought out of Lena’s head. 

It does the trick immediately, her back arching at the contact and a gasp ripping out of her throat to beat across Kara’s mouth. It barely takes a second before she has to give in.

“I’m gonna come, can I come?” Lena asks, hand gripping the back of Kara’s neck and holding hard when Kara drops her face to Lena’s shoulder. She doesn’t get a response immediately, just Kara’s lips on her neck. “Please?”

Kara’s soft yes up near her ear is all she needs to drop her jaw in a silent moan of pleasure. Her legs try to snap closed, but are held open by Kara’s hips and her front pressing hard up against Kara’s front. So close and warm and present, Kara’s lips pressed against her skin as she works Lena through it.

After all the tension rips out of Lena’s body, she goes boneless against the mattress and gives into the soft, languid feeling of Kara’s weight holding her there. She has to work to unclench her fingers from Kara’s neck and bicep, turning her head a little to press a kiss to what she can access of Kara’s temple. There’s a small huff from Kara in response, her body shifting.

“Jesus,” Kara says into the skin of Lena’s neck. It makes Lena laugh a little, her fingers threading up into Kara’s hair. 

“Yeah,” she murmurs. And it’s warm, calming, and good for a few moments as they come down. Until, of course, Kara’s hips jog the slightest, and the fire in Lena’s chest roars to life again. Just like always. 

--

Though the first two rounds of the playoffs had seemed intense as far as atmosphere was concerned, Lena realizes quickly nothing could quite prepare her for a Lakehawks-Skippers Conference Championship. 

The Skippers have home court advantage in the series which means the first two games are at their arena across town. Kara goes on a long tirade about how home court advantage isn’t really a thing in a crosstown series like this one but matters when it comes to things like crowd management and ticket sales. Lena catches a brief blurb on SportsCenter that night about the different methods the Skippers ticket office has employed to bar Lakehawks fans from getting into the game.

Nonetheless, there’s a decent contingent of Lakehawks fans tailgating outside the stadium and a large enough number inside that Lena can pick apart their cheers from those of the home crowd. Jack is on some other level of excited, high-fiving every other Lakehawks fan he sees. Lex had unhappily agreed to remain away from either stadium until their lawyers can get the language of the ownership agreement restructured, but he keeps texting her throughout the leadup and warmups.

The jumbotron keeps the camera on Kara and Leslie as they greet each other at centercourt. It’s not especially warm - Kara reaches out her hand for a handshake, receives a cold look and a nod instead. Siobhan ambles over soon after and slaps Kara’s hand, stopping for a second to chat. It’s still not especially friendly, but Siobhan is clearly trying to fill the gap of Leslie’s coldness. 

“Do you think Siobhan and Leslie could be fucking?” Jack asks. Lena sighs heavily, taking a sip of her double vodka cran as the warm-ups continue in front of them - M’gann draining corner threes in quick succession. 

“Is there a reason you think everyone is fucking?” Lena asks as her eyes follow the arc of a basketball bouncing off the rim. 

“Usually because they are,” Jack replies dryly into the rim of his beer glass and Lena swats at him. 

“You should mind your own business.” 

“But that’s not nearly as much fun as minding other peoples’ business,” he teases with an exaggerated whine in his tone. 

She doesn’t bother responding, because the horn is sounding and Kara is ambling past their seats towards the scorer’s table, tucking her jersey into her shorts. Lena can’t help but feel a sort of anticipatory warmth shoot up her spine when she sees the look Kara throws her way.

The Lakehawks win on the road on the back of a massive shooting performance from Lucy. Leslie doesn’t make much good on her threats to meet Kara on the court and put her on a stretcher. Instead, Kara seems to get the better of the matchup whenever they’re on the floor together and though Leslie’s frustration with that is clear, no blood gets shed. 

Instead, Kara seals the game with an absolutely brutal three point shot over Leslie’s outstretched hand, shrugging at her arrogantly as the shot sinks. Leslie’s expression looks about ready for murder, but Kara’s already jogging away and the Skippers are calling a timeout. 

The Lakehawks fan section goes absolutely wild when the clock hits zero and the Lakehawks have taken the lead in the series. Lena gets caught up in the cheering, Jack jumping up and down next to her, screaming his jubilation and when the team heads out towards the tunnel, Kara catches her eye with a devastatingly triumphant smile. 

One of the lucky things about a National City-only conference finals, Lena finds out later that night, is that Cat has no maniacal bed check policy. Kara shows up at her apartment that night in a blazer and t-shirt and presses her into her couch within seconds of getting in the door.

Winning in the playoffs does something similar to Kara as winning in the Olympics had and Lena finds herself out of breath most of the night. It isn’t until Kara’s smirking at her over a cup of coffee much much later that Lena feels like she finally catches it. 

“You know,” Lena says into the rim of her mug. “You’re very good at that.” 

Kara laughs. A husky, throaty sound that makes Lena shift up against the pillows behind her. “I’m only as good as my dance partner.” 

“I’m not so sure about that,” Lena says with a soft chuckle, enjoying the play of muscle in Kara’s arms as she props her elbows on her knees and drains the last of her coffee. 

“Agree to disagree,” Kara says, setting her mug down on the bedside table and sliding down onto the bed, the mess of sheets tangling up in her legs as she does it. 

Lena hums noncommittally, but stays sitting up, reaching to her own bedside table to exchange her empty mug for her phone and check it, ignoring the way Kara silently stares at her while she does so. 

There are four texts - two from Jack that include gifs of Kara’s arrogant shrug at Leslie during the game, one from Lana about coming into town next week and lastly from Lex pestering as he has been about her timeline when it comes to both her relationship with Kara and announcing his return to the company. 

She sighs at the last bit, closing the messaging app and shifting to her e-mail to make sure she hasn’t missed anything important in the last few hours. There are a few messages there, nothing incredibly urgent, but Lena opens them anyway. 

“Are you doing work right now?” Kara asks, mirth in her voice as she props up just enough to spy the screen of Lena’s phone. 

Lena shields it away from her and gives her a half-hearted glare. “No,” she lies, trying to answer a message from her marketing team about a meeting the following afternoon while leaning sideways enough that Kara can’t see it. 

“And they say I’m the workaholic,” Kara tsks, plucking Lena’s phone out of her hand deftly and holding it out of Lena’s reach even when she tries to grab it back. “Clearly I wasn’t that good if you can even think about work right now.” 

Lena laughs, rolling her eyes, but giving up her stretch for her phone and instead holding her hand out with a pointed enough look that Kara gives her the phone back. “I’m sorry that the real world doesn’t just stop when you ask it to,” she tells her and Kara makes a noise caught between a scoff and a laugh. 

“That’d be a cool superpower,” Kara says, contemplative as she shifts down on the bed again, her hands held behind her head and the play of her biceps doing the job of making Lena forget about any notion of doing work right now. 

“You think?” 

“Yeah,” Kara says, lips pursed in a thought for a moment, eyes on the ceiling. “If you could just shut the world off for however long you want?” 

“I suppose,” Lena says, setting her phone aside and sliding down next to Kara. “What would you do with it?” 

Kara turns her head to the side to regard Lena, moving an arm to invite her in closer. “Take you out to dinner and hold your hand the whole time,” Kara says and though she’s clearly joking, her smirk casual and eyes dancing, Lena feels a spike of guilt all the same. 

“That seems like a waste,” Lena says, sliding up against Kara’s side and enjoying the warmth of connection. 

“Not at all,” Kara says, sure and solid. 

“Hand holding,” Lena deadpans, her palm splaying over the still heated skin across Kara’s stomach, her fingertips reaching to trace the line of tattoo towards her side. 

“Well, you have top tier hands,” Kara murmurs, picking Lena’s hand up and bringing it to her lips. Lena lets a laugh out through closed lips as Kara kisses her fingers. 

“Glad you think so.” 

Kara makes a suggestive sound and wiggles her eyebrows up and down until they’re both laughing at each other in the soft quiet of the bedroom. 

After a moment, Lena sags against Kara’s body, shifting upward enough so they’re at eye level. “We’ll do that, you know,” Lena says quietly, no more than a whisper and though Kara’s smile never fades, her eyes go serious. 

“Do what?” 

“Go to dinner and hold hands the whole time,” Lena says, chest tight and achy and heavy with a mixture of emotion she can’t entirely identify. “Without the superpower.” 

Kara regards her for a few seconds before her smile goes deep and warm and Lena feels her chest expand. “I know we will.” 

“I want that,” Lena admits, somehow more scared by that then the prospect of actually doing it. 

Kara lifts up until Lena’s turning over onto her back, blue eyes hovered over her. “Me too, baby,” she breathes out between their lips before closing the distance and kissing Lena’s thoughts completely away. 

--

It takes the better part of the morning for them to get out of bed the next day, wrapped up in each other. “I needed that,” Kara says into a groan as she stretches her arms above her head. 

Standing, Lena laughs and pulls a shirt off the floor to cover herself. “Needed what?” 

Kara looks smug as she eyes Lena up and down. “That,” she says and Lena throws a pillow at her even as she laughs again. 

They linger around each other for longer than they should, really. Parting only because Kara’s off to an optional pre-walkthrough shootaround with the team and Lena’s got a team meeting with her engineers about a Model L software update. 

There’s an anticipation in the air as they say goodbye, Kara’s smile nothing if not devastating when she answers Lena’s good luck tonight with a confident, “I don’t need luck.” 

“I know you don’t, darling,” Lena responds, leaning up against the door jam and watching her walk backwards towards the elevator at the end of the hall. 

“See you there?” Kara calls out as she pushes the button to call up the elevator. 

“You can count on it.” 

The atmosphere is just as wild as the first game when Lena and Jack settle in their seats at the arena. Skippers fans are particularly raucous, but Lena can tell perfectly well how that’s going to go for them when Kara reaches out to fist bump Jack on her way into the game.

Game two ends with Kara dragging the Lakehawks to a win on the back of a hard-earned thirty-eight points, gained mostly in a struggle against Siobhan that seems to swing back and forth throughout the game. Alex plays particularly crushing defense against Leslie and manages to frustrate her enough that she’s fouled out of the game in the middle of the fourth. 

After it’s all over and the Lakehawks are celebrating another road win, Lena finds herself cheering along with the away crowd as the team makes their way to the locker room. Even Cat catches her eye as she exits the court and gives a little victorious fist pump, but it’s Kara’s wink as she passes that makes Lena feel most triumphant. 

On their way out, Lena finally capitulates to Lex’s persistent texts about meeting up for a post-game drink and invites him over to her apartment, dragging Jack along with her. 

Which is how she finds herself sitting in her living room sipping at perfectly made manhattans and discussing the game. A topic of conversation Lena’d never thought she’d be having with her brother and best friend late at night...and enjoying. 

“Early leads make me feel antsy. We need to capitalize on the momentum,” Lex is commenting and Lena can’t help but glance at her phone every few seconds. 

“Expecting a call?” Jack asks when he notices her divided attention. When she looks at him, his smile is all too knowing and she doesn’t give him the satisfaction of a response other than taking a sip of her drink and turning her phone over. 

Lex seems to pick up on the joke and laughs, taking a sip of his cocktail as well and regarding Lena with an arched brow. “Kara played well tonight. Hopefully she can perform like that for the rest of the series.” 

Instinctively, Lena reacts to the implication Kara’d ever take her foot off the gas, but as she does her phone vibrates and she turns it around to see the picture of the Tokyo Tower displayed there. 

“Sorry,” Lena says, absently and lacking sincerity. “I have to take this.” 

She stands to walk away from them, hearing only Jack’s outright laughter before she’s answering the call with a warm, low, “Hello, darling.” 

Victory is practically oozing out of Kara’s voice when she responds, “Busy?” 

It sends a thrill down Lena’s spine, her free hand flexing unconsciously where it sits against her hip and she wonders how hard it will be to kick Jack and Lex out of the apartment. 

Glancing back towards the living room, she spots Jack standing up from his chair and draining the last of his drink. “Not at all,” she says. “Would you like to stop by?” 

Kara’s laugh is liquid heat and it bleeds into Lena’s chest insistently. “I’m already on my way.” 

--

Lena doesn’t understand how it gets better. How every single time they do this, Lena feels like it’s a new experience all over again. There’s the familiar, sure. The soft way Kara’s mouth feels against her neck, or the way Kara smirks when Lena makes a particularly helpless sound.

But there’s that point of desperation in the middle of it all when the whole world blocks out and all Lena can focus on is the pressure between her legs. Every time it seems to come quicker and quicker, overwhelming Lena before she can even think about it.

It shouldn’t be like that. If anything, Lena should be used to the way Kara toys with her body, used to the strong feeling of fingers and lips across her skin. She should be used to the way Kara looks at her, the burning intensity and focus in her eyes and the warmth of her smile. 

There’s a short, careful moment when Kara looks as if she’s about to say something. Lena can read it clear as day in the way blue eyes dart across her face and her jaw works around like its trying to formulate the words. It occurs to Lena what those words might be and it’s like the silence in the room becomes deafening. All of a sudden, it feels like Kara’s shouting it even when she’s saying nothing at all and it makes Lena want to press in closer, bathe in it. 

The moment passes and Kara drops down to kiss her, their fingers twining where Kara’s holding her hand down against the mattress. “You okay?” Kara asks, voice a whisper near Lena’s ear. 

Lena nods, thinks maybe she’ll just say what she’s feeling, give voice to the crushing weight of emotion in her chest, but then Kara’s twisting them to the side, pulling Lena on top of her and she can’t say much of anything after that. 

--

Before he’d ran off into hiding, Lex and Lena had a standing happy hour date in which they’d meet for drinks and talk about anything except work. Sometimes it’d be too late to really consider it happy hour, but Lex would always say something obnoxious like the happiest hours are the ones spent with family and order them both a shot of tequila they’d regret later. 

Though Lena hasn’t so much as thought about those meetings in close to a year, she can’t fight the warmth of anticipation when Lex officially reinstates them with a particularly formal looking e-mail that makes her laugh. The header reading: Urgent Meeting, 5pm Locke Hart Bar, Luthor Only. 

They don’t meet at Locke Hart - one of Lex’s favorite dive-y haunts on the other side of town - and instead Lena manages to persuade him to keep their happy hours at home for the time being. The liquor is free there, she argues and he laughs enough to agree. 

He shows up with a bottle of Lena’s favorite scotch and a wide smile and Lena breathes in against the feeling of having her brother back in her life.  

“Are we ever going to talk about your time in hiding?” Lena asks as they eat a block of cheese at her kitchen counter and sip their scotch. 

Lex laughs, popping a piece of cheese in his mouth and shrugging. “I prefer to call it a sabbatical.” 

“I’m not sure it qualifies if you’re spending the time partying,” Lena says drily, but Lex just laughs again. 

“I don’t know why you think so lowly of me that you imagine I spent the entire time partying,” Lex says. “Perhaps I pursued spiritual enlightenment. Or found a nice girl. Or designed a new battery cell for the Model L.”

“If this were two truths and a lie, I’d ask for the blueprints,” Lena says dryly. 

“I’m fine-tuning them,” Lex returns with a grin. “My time away was spent well, I assure you. We’ll talk about it one day, when you’re older.”

“Shut up, Lex,” Lena huffs, picking up a piece of cheese and throwing it Lex’s way. 

--

Game three means the Lakehawks are finally back on their own hardwood and Lena marvels at how intense the crowd sounds when she gets to the arena during pregame. She supposes the two game lead the Lakehawks have in the series must be contributing to some of the fan ardor. All the same, it’s the loudest Lena’s ever heard Luthor Corp Arena - even the littlest things get loud cheers, like Eve tagging Lucy off towards the end of the second quarter or the Skippers getting called for a reach-in foul.

The problem is that even though Luthor Corp Arena is more excitable, the Lakehawks seem just as excitable. They’re playing at an effort level Lena isn’t sure she’s seen them reach, and it seems like it leads to some uncharacteristic mistakes - overeager defending and a few too many wayward shots put them in a close game. 

The Lakehawks are down by five as the fourth quarter’s waning seconds wind down, and neither team seems like they’re relenting. The Skippers seem intent on expanding the margin of victory as much as possible, just as much as the Lakehawks are playing like they’re ready to raise hell to at least tie the game. Leslie in particular looks more out for murder than she usually does. Which is certainly saying something.

Though she and Kara have been jostling on and off all series, it hasn’t escalated much. But this game has clearly started to push into real chippiness, with several fouls exchanged between the two of them. There’s been a lot of Leslie chattering and Kara smiling. Lena has spent enough time around Kara and is competitive enough to know how frustrating that would be if she was Leslie, especially on the end of a hard-earned victory that seems set to close with only a few points for Leslie to show off with.

Kara seems amused by the way Leslie tries to body her in the paint or gets in her face whenever she has the ball at the top of the key, but there are a few moments where she looks confusedly over to Alex and Lucy when Leslie gets a little too wild. Overall, the referee seems content with the physicality of the game even though Cat has almost screamed herself hoarse. The game is winding down easily enough, Jack pocketing his phone and Lena finishing the last dregs of her drink, wondering what kind of mood Kara will be in postgame, depending on how these last few seconds play out.

It happens almost too quickly for Lena to even notice, but one second, Kara is covering Leslie at the side of the three-point arc, arms up and stance strong. Leslie is trying to dribble back into the arc, almost right in front of Lena’s end of the Lakehawks bench. Kara is guarding well, her arms hovering close enough to the ball that Leslie can’t quite turn a pass, and Kara’s reaching further around to try to loosen Leslie’s hold, and Leslie snaps her arm back -

The game stops immediately, though whether that’s because the game clock’s reached zero or because of the loud what the fuck Kara lets out, who knows. It’s like everyone freezes for a second after it happens and then all hell breaks loose. Jack shoots out of his seat, along with plenty of the rest of the crowd, and Cat comes crossing right in front of them to start haranguing the ref closest.

“Oh fuck you, Danvers,” Leslie retorts, clearly unapologetic about clocking Kara straight in the face with her elbow. 

Kara picks her head up from where it’d been snapped to the side and Lena gets a good look at the damage, the blood flowing out of an already swelling nose. “The fuck is wrong with you?” Kara lets out, voice terse. She’s in Leslie’s face fast, their bodies bumping, and there’s enough of a crowd around them that it’s getting harder to hear what’s happening - but Lena can read clear as day the annoyance on Kara’s face transcend into real, absolute anger at something Leslie says, her arms reaching fast to grab ahold of Leslie by the jersey with one hand and her other fist clenched and wound back.

Three whistles go off at once as a crowd descends on them. 

The entire Lakehawks bench has stood up to defend their star player and even the Skippers bench has started jogging towards the fray. Lena catches sight of Alex wrapping an arm around Maggie to keep her from darting forward into the fight and Lucy grabs ahold of Kara to start trying to pull her back and off Leslie.

The crowd is booing at this point as J’onn enters the fray to help Lucy pull Kara away. Siobhan manages to get both arms around Leslie’s waist and lift her bodily off the ground and away. Lucy is pushing Kara backward, toward the bench, while J’onn pulls her with a strong grip on the back of her jersey. Kara is paying them almost no attention, her head craning around the mess of people between them to keep her eyes on Leslie.

“Come on, Danvers, you want to go? Let’s go,” Leslie taunts even as she’s being pulled back by her team. 

Kara has blood dripping onto her jersey at this point, but she very clearly attempts to bulldoze through Lucy to get back to the fight. “Screw you, Willis!”

“Get her out of here,” Cat growls out, though which her she’s referring to isn’t clear.

“Kara, you need to calm down,” Lucy is saying, her hands wound in Kara’s collar. “Get off the court and get your face fixed.”

As if on cue, the main ref blows his whistle again and makes a gesture at both women. “You’re both out of here,” he says, but neither Kara nor Leslie make a move to exit the court. Cat starts screaming that Leslie’s at fault and Kara shouldn’t be ejected, ripping her suit jacket off and throwing it in her frustration. The game’s over, the Lakehawks have lost, and ejecting either of them feels superfluous. Plenty of the crowd reacts to notification of their ejections the same way.

There’s still a stream of blood coming out of Kara’s nose, dripping down to her jersey and making Lena want to intervene. If not for the fact that both teams seem to be facing off right in front of her as if in preparation for an old school rumble, Lena might have walked onto the court and marched Kara off it herself. 

Jack is tense next to her, watching the entire thing with wide eyes and Lena crosses her arms, clenching her fingers into her biceps. Lucy gets pulled aside by a trainer with gloves on to wipe her hands free of Kara’s blood, leaving Kara in J’onn’s hands right in front of them. 

He’s trying to talk her down as the crowd still jostles, but Kara still picks her head up when Leslie yells.

“Hey, Superstar! Tunnel,” Leslie says even as she’s being pulled backwards by an assistant and a trainer. “Tunnel.”

“Oh yeah?” Kara’s yelling at her as they get farther apart, nodding up and down and acting like she and Leslie are about to meet on the playground after school to settle all this. It’s maybe the angriest Lena’s ever seen her, blood on her jersey and hands clenched tight.

“Kara, let’s go,” J’onn is saying, now in front of her and pushing her off the court by her shoulders. Another trainer is next to him, gloves on and looking for a way to get at Kara’s face somehow.

“Yeah,” Leslie yells back, gesturing towards the player tunnels behind her. “Tunnel.”

There’s a wild look in Kara’s eyes, Lena’s never seen before. “See you there,” Kara says with a jut of her bloody chin and then Leslie is turning to jog towards the tunnel and Kara turns towards her own. Lena gets a sense of what she’s about to do just as her legs start churning. She almost steps out on the court to stop Kara.

Before Kara can start running away like she clearly intends, J’onn gets a grip on her jersey and pulls her to a halt, just barely restraining her. 

They both go together towards the tunnel, J’onn trying to keep her from running off and Kara gesturing angrily at him. The entire scene is ridiculous and when all is said and done everyone left on the court and in most of the arena is weirdly quiet, trying to figure out what they just saw.

It happens in the span of at most a minute. It feels like the entire game leading up to it was less important than the last few seconds of insanity.

“The fuck was that?” Alex half-yells, looking at Lucy in confusion as she turns away from Cat and the ref’s very loud argument which has now been joined by the Skippers coach. Lucy is looking up at the scoreboard, her head shaking. 

“I don’t know,” Lucy answers, looking just as bewildered as Alex. 

The arena bursts into another round of boos when the ref interrupts the relative calm with an announcement for Cat’s ejection in addition to Kara and Leslie’s.

As everything settles and the refs take a good ten minutes reviewing all the footage to put two more seconds on the game clock and force the Lakehawks to inbound the ball, the game finally ends with the first Lakehawks loss of the series.

Immediately, Lena gets up and retreats to the tunnel ahead of the team ambling off the court. When she gets there, players and coaches filtering in behind her, she spots Kara talking to Leslie heatedly in a corner of the hallway. It seems that at least a trainer got Kara to stop long enough to get her nose to stop bleeding and plugged up, but whatever it is they’re arguing about, both Kara and Leslie seem intensely focused on each other. 

“Don’t play fucking dumb, Kara,” Lena hears Leslie hiss. 

“I’m not playing dumb, Leslie,” Kara says and Lena idles back, not trying to eavesdrop, but undeniably curious. It’s not like either of them seem like they’re trying to hide their conversation, but they’re tucked away enough that no one seems to have caught on to them yet, apart from Lena. 

“You’re such an ass,” Leslie says, pointing angrily at Kara’s face. They’re both soaked with sweat from the game, red cheeks and messy hair and look about seconds away from swinging at each other. Lena’s not sure if she should intervene and she looks back to see if any of the coaches or players might do so, but they’re caught up in their own thing, filtering towards the locker room and getting pulled aside for post-game interviews. 

“What the hell did I do to you?” 

“As if you didn’t fuck your way into getting me traded,” Leslie accuses, and Lena’s brow turns down in confusion at what that could mean. She actually takes a step forward and it draws Leslie’s attention her way, the angry set of her scowl only deepening when she registers Lena’s presence. “Oh speak of the fucking devil.” 

Kara turns at that to see Lena standing there and immediately steps in way of Leslie’s eyeline. “Don’t talk to her,” Kara warns. 

“You dumb fucking slut,” Leslie spits out, though it’s unclear whom she’s talking to. Kara reacts immediately, her fist clenching and back straightening. Lena’s eyes widen, glancing around at all the reporters and other personnel lingering around, watching the interaction with distracted interest. She lets out a low, “Kara,” to stop her from doing something stupid, but thankfully Alex comes striding towards them. 

“Kara,” Alex barks out, coming close enough to grab at Kara’s elbow. “Let’s go, Coach wants us in the locker room.” 

Jack, whom Lena didn’t even know had followed her all the way into the tunnel, has his hand at Lena’s back in silent solidarity and Lucy seems to come up next to Alex to help. “You’re not supposed to be back here, Willis,” she says and Leslie looks like she might continue spitting venom, but instead just cuts a glare to Winn who’s come up upon the scene with his phone out and decides better of it. 

“This isn’t over, Danvers,” Leslie says quietly, so soft Lena barely catches it. 

Leslie leaves and Alex manages to pull her sister towards the locker room with Lucy. Kara disappears into the room, but not before she spares Lena a look, long enough to wink at her, a playfully discordant gesture considering the last few moments. 

--

They meet much later that night. Kara showing up to Lena’s apartment with tape over the bridge of her nose and a sheepish expression. 

“Does it hurt?” Lena asks, when Kara sits at a barstool near the kitchen counter and Lena steps between her legs, gingerly touching the purpling skin under Kara’s eye and gripping her chin to get a better look at the injury. It looks better than she expected, but it’s still noticeably swollen and bruising.

“Nah,” Kara dismisses, capturing Lena’s hand and pulling it away. “It’s fine. Looks way worse than it is.” 

“Why don’t I believe you?” Lena tsks, exasperated at Kara’s flippant attitude. 

Kara laughs entreatingly, pulls Lena in closer. “Honestly, she didn’t even get me that bad. Noses just bleed.” 

“What happened?” Lena asks, still feeling like she has no idea how the end of the game escalated so quickly. She’d seen some of the discussion on social media over what went down between Kara and Leslie, but no one seemed all that confident as to what the catalyst was other than Leslie’s frustration at the way the game had gone. 

“She elbowed me in the face,” Kara says, dismissive. “Did you eat before the game? I’m starving.”

“Why did she elbow you in the face?” 

“Because she’s Leslie,” Kara sighs, shrugging a shoulder and then letting out a deep breath. “Is there any chance we could not talk about it?” Kara asks in a small voice. “I kind of have a headache.” 

The admission of pain makes Lena’s curiosity about the altercation tamper significantly and she puts her hands at Kara’s neck, kneading softly at the spot behind her ears. “I’m sorry, what can I do?” 

Kara hums into the contact, her eyes closing and hands gripping at Lena’s hips. “That feels good,” she murmurs. 

“You didn’t have to come over here if you’re hurting,” Lena tells her softly, enjoying the way Kara goes limp at the continuing contact of Lena’s fingers. 

Her head moves forward, forehead resting lightly against Lena’s sternum and she sighs against Lena’s chest. “You make me feel better,” she says quietly. 

Throat thick, Lena smiles down at blonde hair. “Come on,” she says, pulling Kara up and away from her chest. “Let’s order food and go to bed.” 

Kara smiles, strong fingers gripping tightly at Lena’s hips. “Best offer I’ve had all night.” 

They eat Chinese takeout out of cartons on Lena’s bed and watch some mindless documentary on one of the multiple streaming services Kara’s downloaded to her smart TV. When they’re finished, Lena runs her fingers through Kara’s hair and over her temples until she’s snoring against Lena’s chest. 

After the chaos of the game and its aftermath, the quiet of Lena’s bedroom feels still and perfect and she has to blink against the heat in her eyes as the feeling overwhelms her. Kara murmurs in her sleep, her leg shifting over Lena’s in a familiar dance of their limbs and Lena decides to just let the feeling overtake her and pull her into a restful slumber. 

--

Speculation over the cause of Kara and Leslie’s feud dominates the majority of all sports news outlets the next morning and even some mainstream shows cover it. Theories range from the blander variety - Leslie’s frustration over Kara’s statistical domination - to much spicier - Lovers Quarrel Gone Wrong. 

Lena tunes most of it out, uninterested in gossipy speculation over a situation so close to her and knowing the truth is somewhere in between those two extremes. Instead, she focuses on work, engrossed so much in an upcoming project in South Africa that she forgets to think about the whole thing for most of the day. It isn’t until Kara calls her late that evening when she’s just arrived home, tone wary and hesitant, that Lena thinks to worry about it. 

“Have you maybe seen the news at all today?” 

The question gives Lena considerable pause. As does the careful, uncharacteristically serious way Kara asks it. Immediately her mind goes to the worst case scenario and she’s sure Kara’s about to tell her they’ve been outed, but Kara seems to sense her spiraling brain in the moments of silence that follow and scrambles to add, “Sorry, it’s not - it’s not that bad, I was just curious if you caught my locker room interview.” 

It doesn’t assuage her worry, but she calms down a bit. “No, I can’t say I have,” she says, pouring herself a glass of wine and glancing towards the silent television just visible in the living room. “Why?” 

A beat of silence. “I got asked a kinda weird question today that I wasn’t expecting.” 

It ramps Lena’s paranoia back up and she nearly drops the wine bottle on the counter. “About?”

“Uh,” Kara makes a noise that does nothing to make Lena feel better. 

“Kara, kindly get to the point before I completely lose my mind,” she says. 

“So apparently there’s this rumor that I slept with Lex in exchange for him trading Leslie to the Skippers,” Kara says in a quick tumble of the words, so rapid Lena has to take a second to process them all. 

“I’m sorry, what?” 

“Yeah,” Kara draws out the word a moment, “So they caught enough of what Leslie was yelling at me during the game and now there’s this rumor that I slept with Lex to -” 

“What could she have possibly said to you that would lead anyone to that conclusion?” 

“Probably the part where she accused me of fucking my way into getting her traded and stuff,” Kara says, sounding sheepish. 

Lena had heard the comment in person, had maybe assumed it was something to do with Kara and Leslie becoming romantically involved and not anything else. “What -” 

“It’s not a big deal,” Kara rushes to reassure her. “It was ridiculous, and the media team shut it down pretty quickly.” 

“What did you say?” 

“I didn’t really get the chance to say anything. It came out of nowhere.” 

Honestly, Lena can’t decide if that’s better or worse. “Okay,” she says, still trying to process. 

“I just wanted you to know so it doesn’t blindside you if someone asks.” 

The absurdity of the situation starts to make itself known to her and she gets a horrible flash of her brother and Kara kissing. It makes her cringe, but she lets out a laugh. “How ridiculous.” 

Kara laughs, albeit hesitant. “I know,” she says. “You’re not mad?” 

“At you? No.” Lena chuckles wryly. “Unless you’re really calling me to tell me you’re having an affair with my brother.” 

Kara makes a choking sound. “God, no.” 

They share a laugh, the tension calming considerably until Kara adds, “But, I think Leslie might know about us.”