Capítulo 3: 3. True Love's First Kiss
“Girls!” Jeremiah hollered up the stairs. “If you don't get up, you won't have time for breakfast before the bus gets here!”
That got Kara moving. Slowly.
Alex groaned at the lack of a warm body next to her. “Mmph, I don't want to get up,” she whined. “I'm tired.”
“I'm sorry, Alex,” Kara whispered, knowing it was her fault. She'd had nightmares, even after Alex had joined her in her little twin-sized bed. She’d even knocked Alex on the floor at one point in the night from all her thrashing. She threaded her fingers through Alex's hair, scratching at the base of her neck.
The brunette moaned in pleasure and started to nod off again.
“Oh no you don't.” The Kryptonian gently lifted her foster sister to her feet, ignoring her protests, and hugged her close. “Come on, you can do it.” She gently rubbed her back to help her wake up.
Alex cuddled into her, ignoring her growling stomach in favor of the soothing attention.
“I know,” Kara whispered, kissing the back of her head. “I know. I'm sorry.”
“Girls, are you up?” Came from downstairs.
Kara answered for them, still holding onto Alex. “We're up, Eliza!”
“Well, you'd better get moving! It's getting late!”
“Come on, let's get you in the shower,” the blonde coaxed. She sat the human girl down on the bed for a moment and dug some clothes out for her. “Alex!” she exclaimed when she turned around and the brunette had flopped over onto the pillow. “Come on,” she said again, pulling the girl up and guiding her towards the bathroom.
“OK, OK, God! You're so bossy!” Alex complained.
Kara turned on the water, ignoring her sister's grumbling. When the shower was at a decent temperature, she left the room and closed the door behind her. After a moment, she knowingly used her X-ray vision to check on the other girl. “Alex! Get in the shower!” she said loudly when she saw Alex was just sitting on the toilet seat lid with her eyes closed, still in her pajamas.
The other girl pulled a face, but stood up and started to take off her clothes. “Stop spying on me!” she grumbled, though she made no attempt to hide herself.
Kara rolled her eyes and headed downstairs to get some food.
“Good morning, Kara,” Eliza greeted from the breakfast table.
“Good morning, Eliza. Good morning, Jeremiah.”
“Good morning, Kara,” Jeremiah spoke with a smile.
“Were you girls up late talking again?” Eliza asked as she sipped her coffee.
“Not exactly,” Kara answered, grabbing some eggs and biscuits from the stovetop. “I had nightmares again last night, and Alex was trying to help.”
“Ah, I see,” her foster mother commented. “And how do you feel this morning?”
“I feel fine. A bit guilty for keeping Alex up.”
“Alex will be fine,” Jeremiah assured her with a pat to her shoulder. “She's a tough cookie.”
Kara frowned at the expression. “Tough cookie?”
“Yeah, you know,” Jeremiah explained, “She's strong. Not easily broken.”
“Oh OK,” she answered. “Tough cookie,” she parroted. “Strong, not easily broken.”
“Right,” Jeremiah encouraged.
“Did you finish your homework?” Eliza quizzed.
Kara nodded. "Yes, Eliza." She silently finished her breakfast, and when Alex finally came downstairs, she zipped upstairs to take her own shower.
“How nice of you to join us,” she heard the conversation coming from in the kitchen as she turned the shower on.
“Welcome to the land of the living,” Jeremiah teased. Then, “Alex, are you OK?”
“I'm fine, Dad,” the girl huffed.
Kara washed her hair.
“Are you sure? Kara told us she kept you up with her nightmares last night.”
“It's whatever. Just a part of taking care of Kara.”
The Kryptonian wasn't sure if she should feel ashamed or honored. Was she allowed to feel both? She sighed heavily as she rinsed the shampoo from her hair.
“That's very mature of you, Alex,” Jeremiah said proudly.
Kara couldn't hear any answer, but she imagined her foster sister to be rolling her eyes.
“Did you finish your homework?”
“Yes, Mom.”
“Did you check Kara’s homework?”
Kara paused for a moment in washing her foot. Oh, here we go. She internally braced herself.
“Kara doesn't need me to check her homework, Mom. She's a genetically engineered, super-powered genius. She should be teaching these classes, not taking them.” Alex's voice was monotone due to the fact that they had had this conversation seemingly a thousand times.
“You know she still has trouble with geography and history.”
“A 'B' is not having trouble, Mom. It's a perfectly acceptable grade.”
“Yes, but if she wants to go to Stanford with you, then she needs to get more competitive grades. That's where you come in.”
“What do you want me to do? Do her homework for her?”
“Of course not. There's no need for you to use that tone with me, young lady. I'm being serious here.”
It was times like this that Kara was glad she super-hearing. Eliza and Jeremiah never spoke to Alex like this when Kara was in the room anymore because Kara was always quick to defend her foster sister. It was like they forgot about her powers sometimes. She hated it when they were so hard on her favorite person. In Kara’s eyes, Alex could do no wrong. She was always, always there for her - through nightmares, and panic attacks, and hyper-sensitivity. and bullies - the young Danvers girl was Kara’s own personal hero. She hurried up to finish her shower with the full intention of going down and putting a stop to this conversation.
“You do want Kara to go to Stanford with you, don't you, Alex?” Jeremiah asked.
Kara dried herself with super-speed.
“Of course I do! But we're only freshmen!” The girl argued. “Kara has only been here for a couple of years! You can't expect her to know everything so fast! She's already come so far! She'll figure it out! It'll be fine!”
Kara’s heart ached with the love she felt for Alex Danvers. Always her protector, always her defender.
Eliza was not to be deterred. “Schools like Stanford look at all your grades, not just the ones from your senior year. You really should be tutoring her more.”
Alex growled loudly.
“Keep it up, Alexandra, and you'll be grounded.”
Kara didn't hear an answer, but soon Alex was stomping up the stairs to their room with tears in her eyes. “Why is nothing I do ever good enough for her?” she cried.
Kara hurried over to pull Alex into an embrace. “I'm so sorry, Alex,” she sobbed. “I'll do better. I promise I'll do better. I hate it when they talk to you like that! It's all my fault. I'm so sorry!”
“No, Kara,” Alex said angrily, pulling back a bit to look her in the eyes. “It is not your fault! You're doing so good, and I'm so proud of you. They're just being jerks.”
Kara would never agree to such a statement out loud, but Alex knew all the same as Kara wiped away the human's tears.
“Come on, Angel,” Alex whispered, wiping away the Kryptonian's tears in return. “I love you. Let's not cry anymore. We've gotta get to school.”
“OK. I love you too, Alex,” Kara answered as she gathered her things. She reached for Alex's hand and didn't let go until the bus came and her sister pulled away like always. Kara didn't complain. She didn't much care for the teasing they got when people saw them holding hands either. It was fine. Alex always made time for her after school when they were safe at home, away from prying eyes. That's when Kara always got the best cuddles - after school, as they watched a bit of TV before Alex's parents got home from work. She made a mental note to do something nice for her foster sister when they got home from school that day. She deserved it.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
“Flying with you is so much more fun than flying with Superman!” Alex exclaimed as they glided above the water that night. She whooped and laughed as Kara tossed her up and caught her again.
That laughter was exactly the thing Kara needed to hear after this morning's exchange between the girl and her parents. She’d been trying to cheer her foster sister up the whole day. First, when they got home from school, she made Alex's favorite snacks, then rubbed her back, then they snuggled up on the couch to watch TV, but Alex fell asleep on Kara for about two hours, and when she woke up, it was passed time for them to do their homework.
She held tightly to the girl as she spiraled them into the air with a few loop-de-loops in between. They were far enough out above the ocean to not be seen by anyone, and Kara flew without fear of repercussion. “You want to go higher?”
Alex lit up. “Yeah! Let's go!”
Kara flew up until they could see the few lights that were still on in Midvale at this late hour. It was a beautiful view of a small water-side town full of gorgeous houses and gardens and trees. She grinned when Alex gasped.
“It's so pretty up here!”
“Not as pretty as you,” Kara stated boldly.
“Kara,” Alex protested. “What did I tell you about that?”
The Kryptonian rolled her eyes. “Sisters don't talk like that to each other.”
“Right. And we're supposed to act like sisters.”
“But we're not sisters. We're not even from the same planet,” she insisted, not for the first time. “Do you feel like I'm your sister?”
“You already know the answer to that, so why are you asking?”
“Because I want to hear you say it.” She waited.
After a beat of Alex being stubborn, she spoke, “No.”
“No what?” Kara challenged playfully.
Alex rolled her eyes. “No, I don't think of you as a sister.”
“I know,” the Kryptonian whispered, leaning in close to the human's neck. “I can smell how you feel about me right now.”
Alex pouted. “I told you to stop smelling me!” she exclaimed with a slap to Kara’s clavicle.
Unfazed, Kara persisted. “And I told you, I can't help it!” She really couldn't. Not unless she wanted to hold her breath indefinitely. Still, she would need to breathe eventually.
“I can't control my body's reaction to you,” Alex whined.
“Maybe not, but you can stop fighting it,” Kara insisted. I love you, Alex. With all my heart. I want to be with you. If we were on Krypton, we would be married already!”
Alex closed her eyes and breathed deeply. “What if people find out? It was bad enough when people only saw us holding hands! What do you think they'll do if they find out that we kissed?”
“Well, if we kiss, I promise not to tell anyone.”
The human took a while to think, swallowed, and then nodded. “You swear to Rao you won't tell?”
“I swear to Rao, I won't tell anyone, if we kiss.” Sweet Rao, is she going to do it? Kara’s heart was beating a million miles a minute! She waited patiently as Alex slowly, slowly leaned into her. When their lips finally touched, Kara let out a happy moan.
“There,” she panted afterward. “Was that so bad?”
Alex shook her head and placed both hands on Kara’s cheeks, pulling her in for another kiss. “I love you, Kara,” she said with tears her eyes.
“I love you so much, Alex,” Kara answered, equally tearful.
They stayed there - high up in the air off the coast of Midvale, California on that warm night in mid April - kissing in the moonlight. All in all, Kara felt like it couldn't have been more romantic if she'd tried.
XXXXXXXXXXXX
It was all her fault. Jeremiah was gone, and it was all her fault. Somehow, despite the fact that Kara could see for miles, someone had spotted her and Alex flying that night. Exactly the kind of someone that Kara had been warned about from the very beginning. They took Jeremiah away, and now he was gone forever, and it was all her fault.
How can Alex and Eliza still look at her? How can Alex still cling to her as if her life depended on it? How could Eliza still speak so kindly to her? How could they still love her when she was the reason their family was now so torn apart? She deserved her pain. She deserved to have everything taken from her. She didn't deserve to have love. How could she ever make it up to them?
Still, Alex refused to sleep in her own bed, and though she felt she didn't deserve it, Kara still held her and kissed her and tried to soothe away the nightmares. She never said, “It'll be ok.” But she promised to love her forever and ever, and Alex accepted her words of comfort without argument.
Kara didn't use her powers in public after that.
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