Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Lena Luthor sat in the backseat of her driver’s car; her feet rested gently on the seats beside her. She was immersed in her music as it was the only thing distracting her from the growing fear in the pit of her stomach. Outside, the unfamiliar city began to blur as her eyes grew heavy.

“Miss Luthor,” a gentle voice called out to her. “Wake up. We’re here.” Lena stretched out as much as she could in the cramped car as she slowly opened her eyes. She looked in front of her and saw her home for the next eight months. Directly in front of the car lay a steel grey footpath surrounded by two massive fields filled with stunningly green grass.

Further along, was a field with crisp white lines marking the perimeter, a bench on the side of the field. On either end of the field was a soccer goal with two long poles extending upwards, allowing it to double as both a soccer and American football goal post. At the other end of the path lay a magnificent, cream-coloured building. Besides this main building, there were 6 smaller buildings spaced evenly around the front perimeter of the campus. On the far left of her, Lena spotted what looked to be the housing section of the school which was full of pastel yellow and blue tower blocks. Lena’s head began to pound. She didn’t expect the college to be this large, and she only had thirty minutes before classes started. She looked over at her driver, Derek, who was sporting a soft expression, and suddenly Lena felt the fear return.

“I’m nervous,” she said, tucking a stray strand of long black hair behind her ear.

“Don’t worry, Miss,” her diver replied as he leaned over and placed a firm hand on her shoulder. “You’re a Luthor. You’ll be fine.” Derek’s speech doing nothing to settle her nerves, Lena reached to the backseat and grabbed her backpack. “I’ll be back with your stuff at three, okay?”

“Ok,” Lena replied from outside the car.

And with that brief exchange, Derek drove off, leaving Lena standing alone on the sidewalk. The anxious young woman began walking down the spiralling pathway towards a cluster of large buildings. Seeing as it was only seven-thirty in the morning there weren’t many students nearby. In fact, she had counted a grand total of three so far, her hopes of finding someone to get directions off of slowly dwindling. The three people she had previously counted were all together. Despite the extremely daunting prospect of approaching a group of seemingly tight-knit strangers, she went up to them, nonetheless. Upon closer inspection, it appeared to Lena as though the trio were all training in various ways. The tallest player who was the only one wearing a white jersey, was standing behind some sort of sled-looking device with a boxing bag on the front. He was with another player in full gear who was running towards the sled. The shorter player wrapped their arms around the bag at the front and with a grunt of effort began to push it forward, the weight of the tall man making the task all the more difficult. Once the player had pushed the sled far enough to please the man standing on it, he patted the shoulder of the athlete. The tall player got off of the sled and pushed it back to where it had been minutes before. Another player, who was about an inch shorter than the one who had been pushing the sled ran back a few feet, preparing themselves for their turn. “Ready?” the shortest player called out, questioningly. To Lena’s surprise, the voice was feminine.

“Ready.” He replied.

With her eyes transfixed on the two athletes in front of her, she didn’t notice the third jogging in her direction. The athlete stopped at the bench which just happened to be a few feet away from Lena. Lena, who was surprised by the sudden company, forgot why she had intended to approach the trio. “Oh, um excuse me?” Lena asked, walking over to the bench. The athlete looked up at Lena and met her eyes. The brief eye contact between the pair remained the only indication that the football player had even known Lena was talking to her, as she remained in stark silence, digging through a bag which had been sitting on the bench. “I was wondering if you could help me?” The athlete once again answered with silence, still rooting around in the bag. “You wouldn’t happen to know where Miss Grant’s office is, would you? I’m supposed to have a meeting with her in twenty minutes and I have no idea where her office is.”

“I can help.” The athlete said. “And I wasn’t being rude and ignoring you just now. I was looking for the case for my mouthguard.” She said brightly. “It’s difficult to talk whilst it’s in.”

Lena nodded understaƒndingly. “I’ll take you up there in a second, just let me tell those two where I’m going. They don’t really appreciate it when I disappear on them.” The football player ran off towards the other two players before Lena had the chance to stop her and tell her that she didn’t need to take Lena to the teacher and would be just fine if she pointed her in the direction of the office. Lena looked over at the trio, two of whom were staring at her. The woman who had just been with her returned and sat down on the bench. “Sorry about this, but I just need to change my shoes. It’s cool to stay in your training gear here so long as you don’t track mud inside.” She explained.

Lena let out a small laugh eliciting a wide smile from the seated woman. Once she had changed her football cleats for a pair of black sneakers, the athlete in front of her pulled off her helmet, revealing her long blonde hair. She put the dark blue helmet down on the table and extended her hand out to Lena. “Kara Danvers,” she introduced herself.

“Lena Luthor,” Lena said, taking the blonde’s hand and shaking it.

As the pair walked towards the main building, they exchanged small talk.

“So, Lena,” Kara started, “Where did you come from and why did you transfer?”

“I was attending college in Metropolis and I transferred because I needed a change in scenery,” Lena answered. Kara raised a questioning eyebrow but said nothing. “So, uh, you play on the football team here?” Lena asked.

“Kind of,” Kara answered. It was Lena’s turn to raise a questioning eyebrow but somehow hers was more effective since Kara began to elaborate. “I train with the guys but I’m not officially on the team. I don’t officially have a uniform – this is just old gear I have from last year when I was on the girls’ team.” Kara gestured to her clothing.

“What happened to the girls’ team?”

Kara sighed sadly. “Seven of the girls left since they were in their fourth year and you can’t have a team with four players. The ‘boys’ team, even though they don’t call it that, is very much a boy’s club so I never tried out. I was secretly holding out hope for the girl’s team to get some new members, but unfortunately, no new first years joined.”

“You want to play professionally, don’t you?” Lena asked, already knowing the answer.

“Yeah, I-.” She cut herself off. “How did you know?”

“Your face lights up when you talk about it,” Lena stated, a small smile spreading across her lips.

Kara returned the smile and pushed open the large oak doors in front of them.

Lena stepped in and tilted her head upwards, taking in the foyer. The high ceilings combined with the dark oak wood finishing around the skirting boards reminded her of the dining room in the Luthor mansion. In all honesty, Lena hated people knowing she was wealthy. It made them treat her differently, and she didn't appreciate it, especially since she felt like it wasn't her money to begin with. She followed Kara up the stairs. They walked up the marble steps, small talk continuing as they made their way up to the fourth floor. Every few steps, another person would greet Kara or attempt to stop her for a conversation. Somehow, she was able to avoid said conversations and get Lena to the office in time for her meeting with the principal. Kara could see that Lena was stressed. After all, she was frowning when she had no clear reason to.

“Hey, are you okay?” Kara asked.

Lena nodded then shook her head absentmindedly in response.

“I know we just met, but you can talk to me, you know. Or we can just sit in silence for a minute. Whatever you need.” Kara’s words were sincere and understanding. Lena, whose nerves had been building since she left her hotel that morning, definitely appreciated the sentiment. Kara sat on the top step and patted the spot next to her, gesturing for Lena to join. The pair sat in comfortable silence. “I’m pretty sure I’ve spent more time with you today than I have with Alex in the past month. I think that makes us friends,” Kara said, easing Lena’s mood. Kara took the opportunity to take in the appearance of the girl sitting beside her.

Lena’s look was simple yet effective; she wore a crisp white t-shirt underneath a large dark green jumper tucked into ripped denim jeans. Kara’s eyes traced down the long sleeves to her hands which were somewhat covered by her large jumper. Kara spotted various rings across her fingers. She made a mental note to ask about them later. On her feet, Lena wore a pair of black boots. Her long black hair was curled slightly. It flowed down and covered her shoulders. It was a stark contrast to the blue football jersey and white trousers over the thick thigh and knee pads covered in mud and grass stains. Kara thought that Lena had a particular shine about her. She was the type of girl you wanted to be friends with.

The same could be said for Kara.

Everyone around the school knew Kara, and if they didn’t, they wanted to. She would never acknowledge it, but she was popular. Very popular. Kara was a smart, athletic girl with a bright future ahead of her. She was beautiful and kind and humble... and completely oblivious. She couldn’t tell that literally half, if not more, of the school was pining over her.

“Hey,” Kara said gently. “We should go. Miss Grant is expecting you and she doesn’t like to be kept waiting.” The pair got up and Lena’s frown was practically non-existent. Kara guided the dark-haired girl down the corridor and stopped outside of the office door. “Ready?” Kara asked. Lena nodded quickly. Kara knocked on the office door, and the two of them walked in. “Lena Luthor to see Principal Grant.”

The receptionist nodded then picked up the phone on her desk. Kara gestured for Lena to go over to the receptionist.

“She’s ready for you, Miss Luthor.” The receptionist said, placing the phone back on her desk. Lena looked over at Kara for reassurance.

Kara smiled warmly at her new friend. “I’ll be right here waiting for you. I promise.”

Lena nodded hesitantly at Kara then turned and knocked on the door opposite the receptionists’ desk.

“Come in.” A woman’s voice replied, muffled through the wooden door.

Lena took in a deep breath and opened the door.

“Good morning, Miss Luthor.” The principal said to Lena, neglecting to shift her focus from the stack of papers on her desk. “Have a seat.” She gestured towards the wooden chair opposite her. Lena walked over to the chair and sat down, placing her backpack on the floor beside her. “So, Miss Luthor.” She looked up from her desk briefly before continuing. “How did you find my office?”

“Oh, Kara showed me the way.”

“Who?”

“Kara. I don’t know her surname. She’s just outside.” Lena turned and pointed at the door.

“Call her in.”

Lena got up and walked to the door. Swiftly, she pulled it open and saw Kara at the door, talking to a small crowd of people. She stepped out of the office and walked over to her. Lena cleared her throat to catch her guide’s attention. Kara whipped her head around and smiled brightly when she caught her eye.

“You’re done already?” Kara asked, leaning against the doorframe.

“No. Actually, she wants you to come in.”

Kara’s eyes widened in shock for a second. “Best not to keep her waiting then,” Kara said. She quickly whipped her head back to the group she was with. There were two girls and three boys, all looking up at Kara with admiration. “See you in a bit, guys.”

“Bye, Kara,” they said in unison as they walked off. One girl, with long auburn hair, held back, leaving her alone with Kara. “Bye,” she said in a low voice. The girl bit her lip seductively and winked at Kara before turning and running back to her friends.

Both Kara and Lena walked back into the office and sat down in front of the principal.

“Morning, Miss Grant.”

“Ah, Kira. Nice to see you.”

Lena looked over at Kara in confusion. She responded with a look that said ‘It’s a long story. I’ll explain later.’

“So, Miss Luthor. We received your email with your grades from the end of last year and the modules in your previous course. We’re glad to tell you that your old course was a perfect match for the one that runs here. Congratulations, Miss Luthor. You have a place on our biochemistry course.”

Lena let out a sigh of relief, the stress garnered by uncertainty now gone.

“Alright then,” the older woman said as she turned to her computer and began to type out an email. “Kira. I’ve sent an email to Snapper Carr explaining your absence.”

“And would you mind telling me what that explanation is, Miss Grant?” Kara asked.

“You are going to give Miss Luthor a tour of campus and then show her to reception to pick up her new timetable and dorm key.”

“Alright, Miss,” Kara said.

“Lena,” She looked up at Lena, “Welcome to Stanhope College.”

Lena smiled and left the room after Kara who had her backpack slung over her shoulder.

“So, why does the principal not know your name?” Lena asked once they were outside of the room, and the door was safely shut. She began following Kara back down the stairs.”

“Oh, Kara said, guiding her down a corridor. “To be honest with you, I’m not too sure myself!”

“Have you not corrected her?” Lena asked inquisitively.

“I’ve tried!”

“And?”

“And nothing,” Kara responded. “She still gets it wrong. I just see it as a term of affection.”

“Why’s that?” Lena asked, not understanding.

“Well, she doesn’t speak to any of the students except for a select few, me being one of them.”

“So you see it as an honour, even though she doesn’t know your name?”

“Absolutely!” Kara said, beaming. They stopped outside of a door at the far end of the building. “The first stop of our grand tour; the locker room.”

“And why have you brought me here?” Lena placed her hands on her hips.

“Truth be told, I need to change and it’s on your tour of the school, so… ta-da!” Kara opened the door to the locker room, revealing a rather underwhelming and small locker room. “Yeah, when I said this was the locker room, I meant this was the old girl’s locker room that not very many people use.”

The pair entered the room and in the distance could hear the sound of a shower.

“Kara? That you?” A voice called out.

“Yup. It’s me. I’m with Lena.” She responded, sitting on a bench in front of a row of lockers.

“Who?” The person asked, shutting off the water.

“New girl,” Kara responded.

A couple of minutes later, the person who was showering walked out into the main locker area. Lena was engaged in an inconsequential conversation with Kara and sat on the bench beside her. Kara was wearing a white-ish tank top which she had had on under her blue football jersey, and the trousers with pads she had been wearing earlier.

“Hey,” Kara said to the woman.

“You good?” the woman asked. Kara responded with a nod. “I’ll be back in a few,” Kara said to Lena as she quick-stepped into the shower area.

“Hi, I’m Alex.” The woman said, extending her hand out for Lena to shake. “Alex Danvers.”

“Lena Luthor,” Lena responded. “Danvers? You two are sisters?” Lena asked.

“Yeah. I’m her older sister. Only by a year, as she loves to point out.” Alex, who was wearing a pair of dark trousers and a black sports bra, her white towel resting on her shoulders, catching the few drops of water in her head, reached into a locker nearby and pulled out a black t-shirt and after that, a hoodie. Lena watched as she pulled the t-shirt over her head, the muscles in her stomach twisting as Alex stretched upwards. She also noticed a purpling bruise over Alex’s ribs and found that she couldn’t draw her eyes from the injury. Alex, noticing Lena’s lingering gaze said, “Careful. My girlfriend would be pissed if she saw you looking at me like that,” The joking tone was clear in her voice.

“Oh no, I wasn’t-.” Lena stammered out.

“I’m just messing with you, Lena,” Alex said. “I know you’re looking at the bruise. You’ll get used to seeing them on the pair of us. I’m sure Kara has ten times more. She practices more than any player I know.”

“You were practising with Kara and the tall guy earlier?” Lena asked.

“James.” She nodded, correcting Lena’s nickname for her friend. She shut her locker and smiled at Lena. “I’ve gotta get going. It was nice meeting you.” Alex said, making her way towards the door.

“You too,” Lena called out.

Kara came out of the shower area, fully clothed except for shoes. “Did Alex leave?” To Lena’s surprise, Kara had on a pair of blacked rimmed glasses.

“She said she had to go,” Lena responded.

“Rude,” Kara said, throwing her towel and dirty clothes into her locker. She shut the white door and pulled on a pair of socks as she spoke. “I have to quickly check in on the other locker room then I promise your actual tour will start.” She said apologetically. She folded up the bottoms of the pair of denim jeans since they were just a bit too long in the leg and then pulled on a pair of slip-on black Vans.

“Come on then,” Kara said, walking towards the door. She allowed Lena to leave the room first, before turning the light off and closing the door. “Just a second,” Kara said. She crossed the hall to the other door and knocked twice before opening the door. In the distance, she could see around nine people in the locker room, all calling greetings out to Kara.

“Hey, guys. Have any of you seen Jimmy?” She asked.

“He left about fifteen minutes ago.” One guy answered. Before she had the opportunity to close the door, another one spoke up.

“Are you coming to training later?”

“Can’t. I’ve got stuff to do.” She said,

“You’ve never skipped practice,” said a new voice.

“I bet she’s got a hot date.” Another speculated.

Kara let out a chuckle and spoke up, “I’m leaving now, idiots. Goodbye.”

They all said goodbye to her and allowed her to close the door.

“Come on then ‘hot date’, let’s show you around,” Kara said.

Kara systematically showed Lena around the school. Starting on the ground floor, she worked her way up, showing each of the classrooms designated to each subject. She showed her the science laboratories, the computer rooms, the massage therapy rooms and the mechanic area. They went up another floor, the entire thing practically taken up by the dining area and kitchen. On the top floor were the teachers’ lounges, staff areas and various offices. They then went back downstairs and towards reception.

The duo arrived at the reception and saw an old woman sat, hunched over the desk. The girls made eye contact and Lena cleared her throat, which caught the attention of the receptionist.

“Yes?” she asked, her raspy voice grating on both of them.

“Hi, I’m Lena. Miss Grant told me to come here to collect my dorm key and timetable.”

The receptionist grunted in reply and slowly began to type on her keyboard. “Here you go.” Lena reached over the desk and took the key card and timetable.

“Thank you,” Lena looked at the placard on the desk. “Rose.”

“You’re welcome.” She responded bluntly, dropping back into her seat and beginning to type slowly at the computer on her desk.

The pair turned and walked away. “Dorms?” Kara asked.

“Dorms.” Lena responded.

The two of them left the reception and opened the door to the courtyard. The sun was higher in the sky, allowing a sliver of warmth to embrace them as they left the main building. “Around the back, there is the football pitch where we, uh they, play games,” Kara pointed over the top of the building and towards a goal post, barely visible in the distance.

Kara guided Lena towards the huddle of buildings a few hundred meters ahead of them. “I have a question,” Lena said.

“Shoot,” Kara responded.

“Who was that girl you were talking to earlier,”

Before Kara was able to answer, a voice called across campus, grabbing both of the girls’ attention. “Hey there stranger,” a boy called from the window of the building opposite them. He had shaggy brown hair and was clearly excited to see Kara.

“Hey, Winn,” Kara said, waving in response. She then turned and began to answer Lena’s question. “I assume you’re referencing the girl from outside of Miss Grant’s office. That girl was my friend Max. I’ve known her since 9th grade.”

Lena tilted her head. “She’s into you.”

Kara's face scrunched up, confused by the statement the girl beside her had uttered.

“Oh, my God, you’re oblivious!” Lena exclaimed before bursting out into laughter.

The pair entered the building, got into the lift and waited for it to reach the 12 th floor. “Your room is 162. Basically, on each floor, there are five rooms with a bedroom and bathroom. On the other side of the hall is the shared kitchen and lounge area. This floor has rooms 160 – 165.”

The elevator dinged as they reached the twelfth floor. They walked towards Lena’s room, their footsteps echoing down the empty hallway.

“Hey, Kara,” A door opened as they passed by. A girl with long brown hair and a beautiful smile spoke up.

Kara whipped her head around to see who was speaking “Hi, Nia. How’s your day going?”

“Long! My head is still banging from that party last night!”

Kara chuckled. “It’s a shame I missed it.”

“You have to come this weekend! Even Brainy’s going!”

“Oh, wow!” Kara said, “I’ll see if I can make it.” Lena gently cleared her throat. “Shit! Sorry! Nia, this Lena. Lena, this is Nia” Nia and Lena smiled and shook hands.

“I haven’t seen you around here before.”

Lena smiled politely and said, “I’m new. I just got here this morning.”

“That’s awesome. You’ll love it here, probably.” Nia turned to Kara, “Have you seen Brainy today?”

“Sorry, nope.” Kara replied, “But if I see him, I’ll send him your way.”

Nia chuckled fondly. “Thanks. Bye guys.”

Nia turned and walked down the corridor towards the newly arrived lift.

“Kara?” Came a voice from the end of the hall. She looked down the hall wand and saw Max stood, waiting patiently for her.

“Hey, what’s up?” Kara responded whilst walking towards her.

“I was just wondering if you want to go grab some food?”

“Ahh. I can’t.” She feigned a pained expression. “I’m not done showing Lena around.”

Max threw a dirty look at the dark-haired girl who stood behind Kara.

“Ok. Well, I guess I’ll see you at lunch.” Max walked away from Kara and Lena, barging Lena with her shoulder as she passed before ‘apologising’ and walking off smirking.

“What a bitch!” Lena said to Kara once Max was out of earshot.

The blonde couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s rude, Lena! You can’t say that.”

“Actually, Kara, I can. She’s a bitch. And a needlessly jealous one at that.” Kara cocked her head inquisitively. “Kara, I know you wear glasses but are you really that blind!?”

Kara opened her mouth to protest but realised she had no counterpoint, so she closed it. Lena smiled triumphantly.

“Ok, here’s your room. I’ll leave you to get acquainted with your new place. I’ll be back at around one to get you for lunch.”

“Thanks, Kara,” Lena said, using the key card to unlock the door. Kara turned in the opposite direction and walked off down the hall.

Lena stepped into her new bedroom. It was pitch black in the room. She stumbled around blindly in the dark, searching for the light switch which she eventually found but not before bumping into her bedframe at least thrice. She put down her rucksack at the foot of her bed and took in her surroundings. Her double bed took a large portion of the space in the room. Three or four steps across from her bed was a wooden desk complete with a black office chair (the type that you could swivel side to side on and distract yourself from the work you were definitely meant to be doing), which had been pushed up against the wall. To the left of that was a small television that had been mounted to the wall. On the wall opposite was a tall wardrobe. Lena walked over to it and opened it, the hinges squeaking in protest. She wasn’t sure that there was enough room for her clothes but there was no way to tell until Lillian returned with her luggage in the afternoon. The wall to her right was currently covered by dark grey curtains. She reached over and pulled them back to reveal two medium-sized windows which overlooked the road outside of the school. She spotted a few students throwing a football across the lawn in front of the school. Across the road were a bunch of food shops. One that grabbed her attention was a small quaint dinner which she made a mental note to visit at some point. Lena turned around and spotted a door on the other side of the room in the corner. She walked across the room and opened it quickly, to reveal her bathroom. It was around half the size of her bedroom. The walls were covered in white tiles. The entire far wall was a shower and bath, the toilet next to it. The mirror and cupboards were beside it. She left the wet room and kicked her shoes off, leaving them beside the front door. Lena collapsed onto her new bed and allowed all of the fatigue and sadness she had been holding back for the past few days to wash over her, pulling her into the dark comfort she knew sleep would provide.

A harsh knock to her door shook Lena from her slumber. “Just a minute,” she called out. Her voice came out more croaky than she would have liked it to, but there was no point dwelling on what couldn’t be changed. She sat up on the bed and pulled her hair into a bun. The unintentional tossing and turning she had done in her sleep had made her hair frizzy in a decidedly unsexy way. She opened the front door to see Kara, bouncing on her toes. It seemed as if the girl was always full of energy. “Ready to go?” Kara asked. Lena slipped on the pair of shoes she had left at the door and stepped out of her room, shutting the door behind her.

The pair walked back through the courtyard and into the main building. Lena somewhat remembered the general direction of the food hall but was glad Kara had come to get her or she likely would’ve given up and ordered takeout (and then proceed to get lost whilst looking for the delivery driver).

“Dining hall is just down here,” Kara pointed just in the distance. Kara followed where Kara was pointing and saw a pair of massive oak doors, reminiscent of the entrance to the Great Hall in Harry Potter, Lena thought to herself.

“I remember,” Lena lied, unconvincingly according to the look on Kara’s face.

They walked into the hall, full to the brim with students. There were at least twenty circular tables able to seat ten people on each. There were a few empty tables but were difficult to pinpoint through the sea of students forming a long line that snaked around the room. Kara grabbed Lena by the wrist, causing Lena to flinch on instinct. Her adverse reaction was quick as a flash, but Kara still noticed it, her eyebrows knitting together in concern. Lena, however, didn’t notice that Kara had picked up on her reaction, and allowed herself to be dragged through the crowd. Kara mumbled niceties to the people in line who allowed Kara (and by extension, Lena) to pass in front of them without her even having to ask. Lena guessed by the looks on her fellow students' faces that Kara was only using her status to skip the queue for her benefit but was too hungry to a) confirm her theory or b) care that it was a rather amoral thing to do. The pair stopped a few spots from the front. Kara passed Lena a plastic tray from the pile. It was still slightly wet underneath from being washed earlier and the sudden and unexpected feeling of water on the bottom of the tray caused Lena to drop it to the floor as she recoiled from the wet substance. As she went to reach for it, the broad-shouldered black man who Lena had seen training with Kara and Alex earlier appeared in front of her, crouching to get the tray at the same time. He managed to pick it up first and when he stood up straight, towering over Lena with ease. He placed the tray in her hand with a friendly smile. “Hi, I’m James.”

“Lena,” She said, returning the smile.

“James!” Kara exclaimed, pulling the man’s attention from the brunette to the blonde beside her. “I was looking for you.”

“What did I do this time?” He asked, his voice laced with guilt.

“The homework, I hope. Carr will kill me if I don’t hand in this piece, especially since I missed his lecture today.”

“Why would he care if you attended his lecture or not?” Lena asked curiously. In her experience, college professors didn’t care whether or not you attended their lectures, as long as you handed in your work on time.

“He has an overinflated sense of self,” James said rather matter-of-factly to no one in particular

“James!” Kara said, reaching out to swat him on the arm.

“What!” He matched Kara’s tone. “It’s true.”

“Be that as it may, I wouldn’t say it to his face.” She said in low tones. “Anyway. The homework?” She asked hopefully.

“Right. You have to write 2,000 words on your closest relationship and the impact it has on you as a journalist.”

“What does that have to do with anything!?” Kara said before she could stop herself.

“Maybe he’s just nosey.” Lena offered.

The line moved forward, interrupting their conversation. Identical food trays in hand, the three of them moved down the line, picking from a selection of foods as they went. After paying, the trio walked towards a table at the back of the dining hall. On the table were a total of four people. Immediately in front of Kara was Alex, her sister who Lena had met earlier. Sat beside Alex was a beautiful Latinx girl with long dark hair. Opposite them sat the other girl Lena met earlier, Nia. Next to her was the boy from the window.

“Everybody, meet Lena,” Kara said as she tenderly placed her hand on the small of Lena’s back, sending shivers down her spine. Lena once again flinched away from the touch momentarily before somewhat relaxing into the blonde’s touch.

They all greeted her in various ways simultaneously. Lena smiled awkwardly and sat down at the table beside Kara. James took a seat next to her.

Kara pointed at Alex, “This is Alex, my sister.”

“Kara, we’ve met,” Alex said.

“I know, I just thought it’d be polite,” Kara said. “Anyway, this is Maggie Sawyer,” Kara said pointing at the girl sitting beside Alex.

“Nice to meet you, Luthor,” Maggie said, shaking Lena’s hand across the table.

“You too, Sawyer,” Lena said back.

“She’s quick. I like her.” Maggie announced to the group.

“Not too much, I’d hope,” Alex said, putting her arm around Maggie. They stared at each other lovingly.

“You two are dating, right?” Lena asked, knowing the answer to the question before she even asked it. She recognised love when she saw it and Alex’s teasing comment from earlier that morning had stuck with her. Something about seeing the two lovebirds interact caused Lena’s stomach to do somersaults, and a lump suddenly formed in her throat. Luckily for her, Maggie speaking up snapped her out of her spiral.

“We are,” Maggie said, clutching Alex’s hand. “Dating, that is. Almost a year now.”

“It’s truly sickening to watch,” Kara said, jokingly.

“You only say that because you’re jealous!” Alex shot back.

“You’re right!” Kara said dramatically, bring a hand to her head. “I must confess,” Kara got to her feet, “Maggie Sawyer, I’m in love with you!” Kara grabbed Maggie’s hand.

There was a moment of silence before… laughter. Kara erupted into laughter, the type that bubbled in your belly and made your whole body shake. Maggie and Alex followed suit, cheesy grins plastered on their faces. Lena chuckled, feeling at ease with this new group of people. Kara sat down and winked at Lena.

Seeing Maggie and Alex together made Lena think of Metropolis. Lena didn’t like to think about what she left back home. Of course, she was undeniably in love and they had been happy together. But life isn’t a movie and Lena no longer believed in a happy ending.

“Anyway,” Kara said after catching her breath. “This is Nia, you guys met earlier.”

“I remember… somewhat,” Nia said, shaking Lena’s hand warmly.

“How’s that hangover treating you?” Lena asked.

“Not very nicely!” Nia said before taking a swig of her water.

“And last, but by no means least, this is my best friend, Winn Schott.”

Winn shook Lena’s hand enthusiastically. “Hi!” Winn said, grinning broadly.

“Alright,” Lena replied. After all of her greetings, Lena tucked into the pile of food beneath her nose.

“So,” Kara said, making conversation with the table. “How was the party last night?”

“In a word? Wild!” Alex replied.

“You can say that again!” Nia said, raising her head from her hands. “But maybe, quieter this time.”

Nia took a long sip from her cup and sighed contentedly. Kara smiled at her friend before putting her fork into her mouth.

“Sounds like Nia had fun then,” Lena said, nudging Nia gently. “Want some aspirin?” Lena asked, reaching into her pocket.

“Yes!” Nia said, desperately, reaching her hand out towards Lena.

“Lena, why do you carry around aspirin in your pocket,” Maggie asked inquisitively.

Lena popped two pills out into Nia’s hand before looking up at Maggie, “When I get nervous, I get really bad headaches. First day and all.”

“How come you’re joining now? You’re a few weeks late, you know.” Alex asked, slinging her arm around her girlfriend.

“I kinda… sorta… slightly… got kicked out of my old school,” Lena said, her mouth contorting into odd shapes as she spoke. She could feel Kara’s gaze on her, likely a shocked expression on her face. After all, Lena had implied she left Metropolis of her own accord, which she did in a sense. She dropped her head and focused on the food items on her tray. She had chosen the vegetarian nuggets and fries as her main course, yet somehow the side salad took up most of the plate. On a small plate to the side was a slice of cherry pie and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Lena picked at the chips, not very eager to eat them.

“Good story?” Winn asked before taking a bite out of the chicken wing in his hand.

“Somewhat,” Lena replied.

“You gonna tell it to us?” Nia asked after swallowing the pills in her hand.

“Another time.” Lena looked up from her plate and spotted a familiar face walking towards her. “Sammy?” she asked quietly. The girl looked over at her.

“Lena?” she asked, speeding up.

Lena stood up and walked towards the girl. Lena stopped in front of her “Sammy?” A smile of disbelief was plastered on her face.

The girl nodded. Instinctively, Lena grabbed her friend’s waist and pulled her into a warm embrace. After a few seconds, the pair pulled apart, both beaming broadly. Simultaneously, they turned and walked towards the table where everyone was staring at them. Behind them, a boy in a button-up and blue jumper walked slowly, following them to the table. 

“Brainy, Sam, I’d like to introduce you to Lena Luthor. Lena, this is Brainy.” She gestured towards the boy who sat beside Nia. Lena extended a hand. Brainy took it and shook it firmly.

“Nice to meet you,” Lena said.

“Likewise,” he replied, dropping her hand.

“And this is Sam, but I guess you two already know each other somehow.”

Lena and Sam smiled at each other. “That we do,” Sam said, a single fry dropping off of her fork and landing on the table as she spoke.

“Sammy and I go way back,” Lena said, picking the stray fry up and flicking it at her.

Sam dodged the flying object and shook her head at Lena, her smile widening. “That was childish, Lee,” Sam said.

“You would know,” she shot back as she fought to keep a smile off of her face.

“So, how do you two know each other?” Alex asked, sensing her sisters’ curiosity steadily building. Well, it was less that she could sense her sisters’ ever-increasing inquisitiveness and more that her sister’s leg was starting to bounce up and down far quicker than should be humanly possible.

“We met at a summer camp when we were ten,” Sam said nonchalantly. “My parents shipped me off every year from the age of ten until I was fifteen. Lena and I met after I got into a fight with her... uh…” Sam trailed off looking to Lena to finish the sentence.

“With my friend Andrea.” Lena finished.

“She never did like me,” Sam said, cocking her head, thinking back to her years at that wretched camp.

“Well, she thought you were in love with me.”

“Now where did she get that idea?” Sam asked, feigning disbelief.

“Might’ve had something to do with all of that flirting,” Lena muttered so that only Sam could hear.

“Miss Luthor, are you insinuating something improper?” Sam said, her eyes widening in fake shock. “And besides, I only did that to piss her off after we got into that fight,” Sam stated. The others were no longer listening. Well, everyone except Kara who was trying her best to seem as though she wasn’t listening.

“Even when we were alone?” Lena raised one perfectly sculpted eyebrow. “And please don’t talk like that. You sound like my Lillian.”

“Oh no! Don't say that Lena. She’s a b-.” She caught herself. “A very not nice, horrible lady.”

“And that’s why mommy dearest didn’t like you.”

Sam laughed heartily and threw a stray piece of her salad at Lena who expertly caught it in her mouth.

The table soon fell into comfortable conversations. Somehow, Lena and Kara had wordlessly negotiated Kara’s third box of apple juice for Lena’s unwanted golden-brown fries. Kara was talking to her sister and James about some Football game or other that she had watched over the weekend whilst picking the fries off of Lena’s plate. Lena was talking to Sam, promising her an update on her life and an explanation for her move when they were alone. Nia had been talking to Maggie and Winn about the latest drama involving the cheer team. Somehow, Nia knew everything that was going on at Stanhope, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant. Maggie liked it but also found it slightly eerie. Not long after they had finished up their food and were getting ready to leave, the bell rang signalling the end of their lunch break. The noise in the cafeteria increased as students rushed to put their trays back and get to their lessons as soon as possible to avoid getting penalised for tardiness. Everyone around their table stood up.

“Who’s turn is it to take the trays?” Kara asked, passing her tray to Alex.

“Nia and Brainy,” Winn said without hesitation.

“Each lunch, two people take the trays to the box over there to save time,” Kara explained to Lena, taking the new girls’ tray and passing it to her right. Lena watched her tray as it followed the curved line of the table and settled in front of Nia. Two piles of trays sat stacked neatly in front of Nia and Brainy who each took one stack of trays.

“Goodbye,” Brainy said before walking towards the tray box.

“See you later. Thanks for the Aspirin, Lena,” Nia called out, already following Brainy.

“Are those two dating?” Lena asked.

“We’re not too sure if truth be told,” Maggie said.

“I should get to my lesson,” Sam said. She walked over to Lena and pulled her into a hug. As they pulled away, Sam planted a small kiss on Lena’s cheek. “We’ll catch up later, okay?”

“Alright,” Lena said to her friend.

“Bye Kara. Alex, Maggie.” Alex and Maggie waved at Sam in unison.

“Winn, are you coming?” Sam asked, starting to walk off.

“Oh yeah!” he squeaked before jogging over to Sam. “Bye Kara.”

“Bye Winn,” Kara said, tucking her pale hands into her pockets.

“Lena, Alex, Maggie. See you guys soon.” With that, Sam and Winn walked off to their classroom.

“Well, I have an assignment due tomorrow which I haven’t even started, so I’d better head off,” Alex said. She turned her head and gave Maggie a quick kiss on the cheek.

“What, is that all I get?” Maggie asked cheekily. She grabbed the collar of her girlfriend’s shirt and pulled her down so she could plant one on her. Their lips met in a heated embrace. It was a good thing neither of them wore lipstick or it would’ve been all smeared and rubbed away. Alex took a deep breath and stood up to her full height.

“Bye sis,” Alex said, hugging her little sister. “Nice seeing you again, Lena,”

“Bye, Alex.”

Alex gave Maggie another quick peck before walking away from them.

“What are you gonna do now, Mags?” Kara asked.

“Not too sure, little Danvers,” Maggie said to Kara. “Might just go and watch a couple of movies whilst reluctantly working on my coursework.”

“You have fun with that!” Kara said, giving Maggie a quick hug.

“Bye, you two,” Maggie said as she walked off. “Try not to get into too much trouble without me!” She called out.

After a week, Lena had gotten surprisingly comfortable at Stanhope. She had easily settled in with the group of people she had started to call her friends. The girls of the group were sat in the communal lounge area on the 12 th floor. They were attempting and failing to watch a movie together. Alex and Maggie were cuddled up on a couch on the left side of the room, chatting away quietly. Nia had drifted off on the right couch, stretching out like a cat and taking up the entire thing. Lena and Sam had resorted to sitting on the floor, allowing Kara to stretch out on the middle couch. Lena and Sam were playing a game they invented together which was essentially a mashup of poker, blackjack and go-fish. As a result, the only person watching the movie was Kara who, it turned out, wasn’t even paying attention to the film. She was far too preoccupied to let it invade her fast-thinking mind. She was absentmindedly playing with Lena’s hair with the arm that was hanging lazily off of the sofa. Her eyebrows were knitted up in a frown. Alex got up and went over to the kitchen part of the lounge and poured herself a drink. Noticing the look on her sister’s face, she threw a tangerine which had been sitting on the side for god knows how long at her sister. It hit her square in the chest. She sat up quickly, looking around for the culprit. Kara caught her sister’s eye and Alex gestured for her younger sister to go to her, and Kara did so, climbing daintily over the back of the sofa.

“What’s wrong?” Alex asked quietly enough that no one else would hear.

“Nothing. I’m fine.” Kara replied.

“Liar. You’ve been frowning like a bulldog for the past hour.” Alex shot back.

When her sister didn’t reply, Alex reached into her pocket and pulled out a copper coin. As she spoke, she placed the cent into Kara’s hand. “Penny for your thoughts?”

With a soft smile on her face, Kara closed her fist around the coin. “Fine,” Kara said. She let out a sigh before she spoke. “I made a promise to myself that I’d go to college and work hard to get my degree. All I want to do is pay Eliza and Jeremiah back for all they’ve done for me. I know I have to work super hard. I’m so torn between what I want to do after college. I love journalism and writing for the college paper despite Snapper’s tedious lectures, but football, it just. It owns my heart. And I’d love to go pro, I mean more than anything, but I have no chance when I’m not on a team. I should be on the team. I should. I’m just as good as any of those guys on the team, if not better. We all know it. I-... I’m just-.” Kara sighed, words escaping her. She hated when that happened. When she got too stressed or flustered, her ability to form coherent sentences was ripped from her no matter the situation, and truth be told, she was getting rather sick of the ever-increasing occurrences.

Alex let out a sympathetic chuckle whilst shaking her head. “Mom and Dad love you. Like a whole lot! You don’t have to do anything to show them how grateful you are for them. And as for what you want to do after college, we’re all here for you. Whether that’s going into journalism or playing professionally, both of which you’re capable of doing, we’ll be here. But Kara,” Alex got to her feet and pulled her sister up. “You have two more years until then and you work so hard all of the time. Answer me this, how many days off have you had?”

Kara looked up at her sister, a guilty expression spreading across her face, “Define ‘a day off’.”

“An entire day you haven’t trained or written for the college paper. A day you’ve had to yourself to relax in the past three years.”

“Um-.” Kara lifted her hand and started counting her fingers. “Zero.”

Alex’s eyes widened in shock. “Kara!”

“What! I have a lot to do!”

“Kara, you work too hard,” Alex said.

“But-.”

“No ‘buts’, Kara. If you keep on going like this, you’re going to collapse.” Kara went to reply but instead chose to sigh and let her sister continue. “You have to make me a promise.”

“What?”

“Stop working so hard all of the time. Relax. Have some fun. Here’s a suggestion, come to the party this weekend!”

“No!” Kara said poignantly.

“Why!?”

“I don’t do parties.” She said nonchalantly, shrugging her shoulders in defiance.

“How do you know whether or not you do parties if you’ve never been to one?” Alex asked smugly.

“Alright. Fair point.”

“So, you’ll come?” Alex felt a surge of pride in her chest. She loved her sister and just wanted her to have fun.

“I’ll think about it.”

“You know what? That’s good enough for me.”

The pair settled back on their respective sofas and Kara felt slightly better. She was still stressed, but somehow, when she was surrounded by her friends, it seemed to wash away, albeit for a brief period.

Chapter Text

“I still can’t believe you missed your own birthday party,” Lena said, holding back a laugh.
“How was I meant to know it was a party for me!” Kara countered.
“It was a surprise, Kara. That’s the whole point.” Alex said.
“I told you, I don’t do parties,” Kara mumbled.
The three young women stood around the kitchen island, chatting away.
“Kara, you have got to loosen up!” Alex said.
“Alex, I already apologised. What more can I do?”
“Look, I get it, okay. I get why you’re so tough on yourself, but it’s not healthy.”
“Can we please not do this right now?” Kara pleaded. She spun on her heel and walked towards the refrigerator. She pulled out a smoothie in a shade of green that no one should ingest and passed the plastic bottle over to Lena before pulling out a bottle of lemon water for herself. Kara took a swig of the cold beverage before closing the door with her foot.
“Alright, I’ll lay off,” Alex said, raising her hands in surrender. “But at least let me give you your birthday present.”
“Ooh, presents!” Kara said, sounding unnervingly similar to an overexcited 5-year-old. “Where is it?” Kara said, eyes darting around the room.
“Locker room,” Alex said purposely keeping her tone flat.
Lena watched as the two walked towards the elevators. “You coming?” Kara asked after pressing the call button for the lift.
“Nah. I think I’ll go and annoy Sam.” Lena replied.
“See you in a bit,” Alex said warmly as the two young women disappeared into the lift, leaving Lena alone in the kitchen. She walked around the corner and into her friend’s dorm room. She plodded down on the bed beside her friend who was lazily scrolling through her phone. For a minute, neither one of them said anything but Sam could feel Lena staring at her. “If you look at me for any longer,” Sam started, her eyes still glued to her phone. “You’re going to wear a hole in my cheek!”
“Shut up!” Lena said through a grin.
Sam put her phone down and looked up at her friend. “What’s up?” Sam asked.
“Kara and Alex just left, which means we have about 30 minutes to set up,” Lena replied.
“And you want my help?” Sam asked, not taking her
“No actually. Nia wants your help. I only got roped into helping because she has those great big eyes that you just can’t say no to.”
“So why are you asking me to help, and not Nia?” Sam asked.
“Because you can’t say no to me.” Lena jibed.
“Alright, that’s fair,” Sam replied, sliding her phone into her back pocket. She stood up and stretched her body, her back clicking with relief. “I have one condition, though. I’ll only help if you tell me why you left Metropolis.” Sam said almost sharply.
Lena considered for a second before her thoughts were interrupted by the loud, incoherent shout of Nia from the kitchen. “Fine.” She answered, stepping out of the room.
The two girls began to string up some white and blue bunting Nia had left on the other couch, along with a note which informed the pair that she had gone to the bakery to pick up the cake they had ordered. “So then.” Sam said slowly, “What happened?” She was stood on the sofa along the wall on the right side of the room. Lena sighed and swallowed, loosening her grip on the bunting. She knew she’d have to tell Sam why she had moved from Metropolis sooner or later but was really hoping it would be later. Like much later.
“Does it have something to do with Andrea?” Sam pressed on cautiously.
Lena found that she could only hum in response, her throat slowly tightening as she thought about the events that unfolded in Metropolis. The raven-haired girl cleared her throat, the non-existent barrier in her throat slowly tightening, refusing to budge. “Andrea cheated on me.” She said,
“What!?” Sam exclaimed. She was so startled she dropped the bunting she was attempting to tack up and had to reach back down for Lena to pass it back to her.
“With Jack.” Lena finished.
“As in Jack Spheer, your ex-boyfriend?”
“Yep,” Lena said.
Sam paused for a moment to grasp the weight of what her friend had just told her. “Holy shit, Lena.” She stepped down from the ladder and moved it along the carpet. They worked in silence for a few minutes until all the bunting had been hung up. Sam watched as Lena pulled out an ensemble of bowls in various sizes and place them down on the kitchen island for Sam to move to the table in the middle of the room. Sam walked towards where her friend had placed the bowls and braced herself to ask about the obvious heartbreak Lena had experienced, unable to stop the questions she had, flooded out. “How did you find out? When did you find out? What did you do when you found out?” She said, the questions tumbling out, not expecting Lena to answer all of the questions she had posed in quick succession of one another.
“I saw them… together,” Lena said quietly as Sam walked back and forth from the island to the table. “On her birthday. I went to surprise her before her party and they were... so I did what I did best. I ran. Lillian had me homeschooled for a couple of weeks whilst my transfer was sorted and I moved here.”
“Wait, you moved here alone?” Sam was taken aback by the revelation.
“Yeah. I arrived in the city the evening before I started and slept in some fancy hotel paid for by Lillian. After everything with Lex, what she did was the last straw. I couldn’t stay there anymore, Sammy. I cou-” Lena stopped talking, the lump in her throat impossibly large. She felt tears threatening to spill over. She took a deep breath and felt Sam’s presence beside her. It was somehow comforting yet she felt worse. Lena was determined not to cry. Sam, who had rounded the island, pulled her friend in close to her, engulfing her into a large domineering hug. “I feel so guilty, Sam.”
“Lena, you’ve done nothing wrong!” Sam mumbled into Lena’s neck, refusing to let go of her.
Lena pulled back from her friend. A few tears had spilt over her barrier. It wasn’t the first time Sam had seen her cry but she still hated the vulnerability nonetheless. Lena started to busy herself with preparations, puling out large bags of crisps, nuts, biscuits and other snack foods. She hauled them over to the table and dropped them on the couch on the left side of the room. Before Lena continued to discuss Metropolis, she needed some alcohol in her. She looked up at Sam who recognised the look on her friend’s face and poured a drink of some non-descript alcoholic drink from the assortment she had laid out on the kitchen island. She brought the red solo cup over to Lena who downed it quickly and put the cup down beside the snack foods. Sam took charge and began opening the bags of snack foods and began to pour them into the bowls in front of them.
“You said I did nothing wrong,” Lena piped up, “But I did. I never broke up with her, I just left. I ran away scared, like a little kid all over again. I ran and I got a new phone and cut her off, but I never ended it. And deep down, I know that if she turned up today, I’d take her back without a second thought... and I hate myself for it.” Lena let out the thought she had been holding onto since the night she left her old College campus for the last time and felt all the better for it and yet at the same time so much worse.
“Hey,” Sam said softly, gently placing her hands on Lena's cheeks. Sam gently lifted her friend’s head so the pair were looking directly at one another. Lena’s eyes were furiously red, the new tears she was holding back brimming, giving her eyes a glassy look. “C’mere” Sam stood up and pulled up along with her. She drew Lena into another, more forceful hug and gripped her tightly. “You have nothing to be ashamed of, alright.” She spoke softly to Lena. Sam held Lena in her arms, her grip firm. She wanted to show her that she’d be there for her no matter what. Sam truly cared for Lena. After all, she was one of her oldest and dearest friends. Sam could feel Lena’s breathing begin to steady and the pair slowly separated. When she leaned back, Lena had her eyes locked on Sam. Lena had an expression on her face that Sam couldn’t quite read. It was a mixture of gratitude and something else. Something she hadn’t seen on Lena before. Sam watched apprehensively as Lena’s tongue dragged lightly across her bottom lip, leaving it with a glossy shine as she did the same to her top lip. It was a simple action yet Sam found herself somehow enchanted. She took a hesitant step towards Lena. The atmosphere in the room clear shifted and both of them could feel it. She edged closer until they were merely inches apart. Sam’s hands reached up and cradled Lena’s jaw. Instead of giving herself time to think her way out of it, Sam threw caution to the wind and kissed Lena. It was soft and chaste and over far too quickly. It wasn’t as though the pair hadn’t kissed before, but that had been stupid kid stuff. ‘Practise’ they had called it at the time and were both a bundle of nerves and giggles. So yes, they had kissed before but there was something different between them this time. Lena kissed Sam back, her hands reaching out to Sam and pulling her closer by her hips. Lena’s hands remained there, balling the silky fabric of Sam's shirt in her softly clenched fists. It was still soft but far less chaste and sent a shock through Sam. Raising the stakes, Sam traced her tongue over Lena’s plump lips. Lena’s breath hitched and the pair began to kiss with more fervour. They were kissing with a truly indecent amount of tongue for where they were located. One of Sam’s hands had left Lena’s cheek and found its way to the small of her back and put a small amount of pressure on Lena, pushing her body impossibly closer to Sam’s. Unsure of how it happened, the pair ended up on the sofa behind them, still making out with as much urgency and lust, Sam’s body hovering above Lena’s. It was the feeling of Sam’s thigh in between Lena’s legs which brought the dark-haired woman back to reality. “We should stop,” Lena murmured out against Sam’s lips. She felt Sam smile and hum in recognition.
The pair began to slowly separate from one another when the dinging of the elevator arriving at their floor sent the two reeling apart. Nia walked onto the floor to see Sam and Lena sat on almost opposite ends of the couch made her raise a questioning eyebrow but she was far too busy to dig into whatever was going on there. Max followed behind Nia and eyed the pair on the sofa suspiciously. A glint of mischief twinkled in her eyes as she walked past, a knowing look on her face. Lena turned to Sam, her heart still beating extraordinarily fast and said “I’ll just be a minute.”
Lena got up and walked to her dorm room. Once in her room, she made a beeline for the bathroom. Lena sat down on the cool tile, resting her head against the door. Her head was spinning; hundreds of thoughts dashing through her brain at a thousand miles per hour. After a minute, she stood up and moved over to the sink. Lena splashed cold water on her face then looked at her reflection in the mirror. Her lips were pink and slightly puffy and her eyes had a pink tinge from where she had let out a few tears earlier. She buried her face into a handtowel nearby and suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of guilt despite doing nothing wrong. The thoughts in her head had dissipated down to two: ‘1) did Sam hate her’ and ‘2) what would Kara say if she found out.’ That second thought took her by surprise. Lena did her best to silence the annoying voice in her head and returned to the living area where Nia was busy bossing about Sam and Max. Lena squared her shoulders and returned to the area, giving Sam a soft smile. Sam returned the smile and walked over to Lena, bumping her with her hip as she passed her, easing Lena’s mind. Half of it at least.
Meanwhile, Kara excitedly followed behind her sister, relentlessly asking questions about her birthday present but Alex refused to let anything slip. “Kara, you’re minutes away from getting it, can you not wait?”
“Hey! I’m excited! I thought you didn’t get me anything!”
“You thought I forgot to get you a birthday present!?” Alex was somewhat offended by the revelation.
“You’ve been busy lately.” Kara reasoned.
“Kara,” Alex said sincerely. “I’d never forget to get you a present, you idiot.”
The pair entered the girls’ locker room and Kara immediately looked around but saw nothing out of place. “Where is it?” She asked.
“Locker,” Alex said with a smile creeping onto her face.
Kara scuttled over to her locker and opened it eagerly. Hung up in the small space was a dazzling white football jersey with a blue stripe on the sleeve followed by a thinner red stripe below it. Kara curiously pulled the garment out for closer inspection. On the front was a large ‘13’ in blue. Still confused, she flipped it around and saw the same large number 13 on the back along with ‘DANVERS’ in block capitals just above it, the blue lettering lined with red.
“What..?” Kara trailed off. She looked up at Alex who had a massive grin on her face. Realisation dawned on kara. “You’re kidding!?” Kara said, fighting to hold back her excitement.
“Dead serious,” Alex said, beaming. Kara practically dove into her sister’s arms. After a few moments, the sisters parted.
“What did you do. I mean how did you-.” Kara began rambling out questions before Alex cut her off.
“I just spoke to the coach. You did the rest.” Alex said, spinning her sister around to face the doorway. A tall black man with his hair in short twists stood at the door. He was significantly older than the pair in the room. He wore a white polo shirt and red basketball shorts. As he entered the room, Kara stiffened slightly, nervous with admiration for the man before them. “Coach Jones,” Kara said.
“Kara. Alex.” He replied, nodding at each girl.
“I’m sorry sir, but I’m a bit confused,” Kara said. “Am I really on the team?”
“Yes, Kara. You are,” he said, clasping his hands behind his back. “But there is one condition.”
“What is it?” Kara asked, quickly.
“Ask me to be on the team yourself.”
Kara was taken aback, expecting a different answer. “Why?” She asked.
“Kara, we all know how talented and dedicated you are to football, but if you don’t ask for help or seize opportunities when they are sat in front of you, they will pass you by. Asking those around you for opportunities could be the difference between you being drafted or not. I’ve spoken to Alex and the rest of the team. Now all that’s left is for you to seize the opportunity.”
Kara inhaled a deep shaky breath and as she exhaled, received an encouraging squeeze on her shoulder from Alex. “Coach. I want you to let me on the football team.”
Coach John held back a smile and responded to the athlete with “Why?”
Kara faltered for a second. She wasn’t one to boast about her achievements. Don’t get her wrong, she liked it when her hard work was noticed and appreciated but she doesn’t often go out of her way to point out her efforts. Doing so made her stomach twist into knows leaving her feeling uncomfortable and overly exposed. She pushed down the doubt as well as she could and began to plead her case as best she could whilst her face steadily grew pinker.
Once Kara had finished her semi-rambling speech, the coach was silent for a second as a quizzical expression settled upon his face. Before kara had the opportunity to speculate what his expression meant for her, a large eye wrinkling smile replaced his previous expression as he stepped forward and shook Kara’s hand firmly. “Welcome back, Kara Danvers.”
Kara enthusiastically shook her coaches hand, joy emitting from her. “Thank you, Coach.”
Coach Jones took a step forward and lowered his tone almost conspiratorially, “Kara, you are good enough to be on the team. Remember that. You have the potential to be our greatest asset this season. But I want you to know that I won’t give you any preferential treatment. You will be treated the same way I would treat any other player, okay?”
“I would expect nothing different, sir,” Kara replied, straightening her back slightly.
“Now go. Celebrate. Hang out with the rest of the team. But don’t have too much fun. You have training at 6 am on Monday.”
Kara and Alex smiled politely at John as they left the locker room. The sisters walked side by side in comfortable silence through the quiet halls. Once they got outside. Kara closed her eyes and took a deep breath of the crisp evening air, smiling happily. She allowed herself a moment to fully process what just happened. When she opened her eyes just a minute later, Kara was greeted with the vision of the Football team, led by their captain James, walking towards her and her sister. The team looked carefully at Alex as they approached, a sort of hope and worry in their eyes. It seemed as though they were actively avoiding eye contact with Kara. Looking at James, Alex nodded her head firmly and the entire team began to smile broadly. It was the type of smile you’d see on a friend after telling them you got into your dream school. It was full of pride, hope, anticipation and joy. The team practically sprinted the few feet distance between them and hoisted Kara onto their shoulders. Kara let out a surprised laugh as the boys below her began to chant her name rhythmically whilst walking down the path to her dorm.
There was a party on her floor. Kara could hear the bassy music from two floors down. She was far from a fan of elevators, especially when they were full to capacity. She was squashed beside her sister at the front of the lift with her new teammates standing in neat rows behind her. To distract her mind on the short journey up, Kar began to identify the players around her. The first person she spotted was her close friend James. Beside him stood Manchester, at least that’s what his friends called him. Another familiar face was on the other side of James, a tall tan man called William Day. William was talking to Mike Matthews, her sort-of ex who was a bit of an arse but a pretty good player when push came to shove. Continuing, Kara spotted Myxy joking about with someone whose name she couldn’t quite place, although the name Peter popped into her head. The ding of the elevator arriving at the 12th floor brought Kara back to reality. She stepped out of the lift and walked to the common area which seemed to be the source of the music she had heard. When she entered the area, Kara felt her heart skip a beat. The room was full of around 20 familiar faces. Whoever had decorated whilst she and Alex had been in the locker room had strung up white and blue bunting around the kitchen island and windows, and a cake with the phrase ‘Congratulations Kara & Happy Birthday’ sat on the table in the middle of the room. There were a few bows filled with snacks and bottles of alcohol were littering the kitchen island.
Kara began to greet her friends who were talking quietly among themselves.
Soon, the room was filled with friends and acquaintances. Kara was surprised to find that she was actually enjoying herself. However, after 11 pm, the joy she had felt was slowly replaced with discomfort and fatigue. She found that the air had become warm and sticky and made her feel claustrophobic even in the large room. She discretely retired to her room, making eye contact with her sister who was dancing happily with her girlfriend, before Kara left.
It didn’t take Lena long to realise Kara had left the room. Lena was having a conversation with Nia, Brainy and Sam when she looked around for her friend but couldn’t see her. Lena figured Kar had retired to her bedroom. After all, Kara had said she wasn’t one for parties. Lena saw her opportunity to finally give Kara the present she had gotten for her. Lena politely excused herself from the conversation and hurried off to her bedroom before anyone had the chance to stop her. She quickly grabbed the small package wrapped in colourful paper and left her room. Lena walked apprehensively down the hallway to Kara’s bedroom. She knocked on the wooden door 3 times and waited for a reply. “It’s open. Come in,” Spoke a muffled voice from inside. Lena wrapped a slightly shaky hand around the handle and opened the door. The overhead light in the room was off, leaving only Kara’s meek desk lamp to light the room. Kara was sat cross-legged on her bed and her attention was on the tv ahead of her.
“Hey,” Lena said, walking over to her new friend. She slid down onto the swivelling seat at the table near the head of Kara’s bed.
“Hi, Lena,” Kara responded, her voice softer than usual.
“I brought you something,” Lena said, handing the slender box to Kara.
“Oh, Lena,” Kara said taking the present from the dark-haired girl. “You didn’t have to get me anything.’
“I know but I wanted to find a way to thank you for everything you’ve done for me since I arrived here,” Lena said, unable to meet Kara’s eyes. A furious blush spread slowly across her cheeks. “Go on.” Lena urged, “Open it.”
Kara grinned and tore the wrapping paper off of the present, revealing a mid-length box. Kara pulled the lid off of the box and was greeted with the present Lena had got for her. In the cushioned box was a pair of sleek sports glasses. Kara looked up at Lena, her eyes twinkling.
“Thank you,” Kara said, earnestly.
“It was no problem. Besides, I was reliably informed tht your old pair lost a lens and were kind of rubbish anyway.” Lena replied.
“These look super expensive, though,” Kara said worriedly. “I would’ve been happy with just a cheap pair.”
“Honestly, Kara, It was no problem. I promise.” Lena said. “What are you watching?” Lena asked half attempting to change the subject and half genuinely curious, the sound from the television piquing her interest.
Kara placed her new sports glasses and box on the table and diverted her attention to the tv screen. “I was channel surfing and ‘Wizard of Oz’ was playing, so I thought I’d watch it. Care to join me?” Kara offered.
Lena pondered the proposal, weighing her options. She could return to the party, which from the sounds of it was gearing up despite the late hour, or she could stay in the warm, dimly lit room with Kara and watch a movie. Lena wasn’t the best at making friends. Growing up with Lillian Luthor hovering over your shoulder tended to have that effect, but she was determined to try and repair the emotional damage Lillian had caused her, and that started with learning how to make friends. “Yeah, sure,” Lena said, making up her mind. “I’ll stay.”
Kara scooted over on the bed, making space for Lena to sit beside her. Lena kicked off her shoes and joined Kara on the bed. After a few minutes of comfortable silence, Lena piped up. “We’re friends now… right?” Lena asked hesitantly.
“Yeah, Lena,” Kara said, a slight chuckle escaping her lips. “We’re friends.”

--

For the second time that month, Kara Danvers found herself at a party. This time, she wasn’t too sure how she had gotten herself into it. She was pretty sure that James had convinced her that Kara should attend the Halloween party that one of the frat houses were hosting. He had said that they could use it as a team-building exercise. So, Kara found herself dressed as a zombified football player along with 5 of her teammates in the large house of the Sigma-Phi Fraternity. Since becoming the centre midfielder of Stanhope’s Football Team, Kara had found herself the centre of attention, more so than usual, so once she entered the house there was immediately a crowd of people around her and the rest of the team. However, when Kara spotted Lena across the kitchen, she quickly excused herself from the conversation going on around her which she wasn’t paying attention to and walked over to Lena.
“Hey there, stranger,” Lena said.
Kara delicately embraced Lena, who accepted the affection, if a little hesitantly. Lena found herself unable to wholly relax in Kara's tight grip but still enjoyed the hug. “Nice costume,’ Kara said.
“It’s nothing to write home about,” Lena replied jokingly. She was dressed in a short red dress with puffy sleeves and a black corset over the top. She had a black eye patch over one of her eyes, a fake parrot was sewn on the shoulder of her dress, and a pair of thigh-high black boots on. “Although I seem to have lost my cutlass somewhere,”
“It’ll show up eventually,” Kara replied. “Probably.”
“I see you came in a group costume,” Lena said as she eyed Kara’s costume curiously. The old, tattered silver football jersey she wore had some ragged slashes, exposing a part of Kara’s muscular midriff. The silver and green football pants had multiple slashes up the leg with blood splattered across the entire costume.
“Oh, yeah. We’re the undead ‘Star City Comets’.” Kara said, smiling. Lena looked at Kara with a blank stare. “Oh, my bad,” Kara chuckled. “I forget you haven’t been here long. They’re one of our rival teams. They gave us their old jersey’s to use. See,” Kara turned around to show what was left of the name on the back which read ‘O. Queen’.
“I see,” Lena said holding back a smirk. “Well I guess your costume isn’t too shabby, but if it was a competition, Brainy and Nia would easily win.” Lena pointed at the door where Nia was loitering having just arrived at the party. Nia and Brainy were dressed as two of the ghostbusters. Kara and Lena walked over to their friends and greeted them warmly.
“Hey guys,” Kara said. “Where’s the rest of your entourage?” Kara said jokily. She knew that Maggie and Alex were supposed to be attending the party as the other two ghostbusters.
“Kara,” Nia said seriously in a low tone. “Alex needs you.”
Kara felt like a bucket of ice-cold water had been poured over her head. She felt her heart beat harder than it could. “Where is she?” Kara asked.
“In her room,” Nia replied. “She won’t leave. All she said was to come and get you.”
Kara nodded, threw an apologetic look at Lena and left the frat house. She ran as fast as she could. It felt as if her feet were barely hitting the stony pavement. Soon, she was back at her dorm and standing impatiently in the elevator. As soon as the steel doors opened, she darted out. She knocked once on her sister’s door and went to open it, only to find the door locked from the inside. “Al? It’s me.”Kara said delicately, her hand placed on her door. She heard shuffling from inside the room and a clock. The door opened slowly to reveal Alex who had returned to her spot on the carpeted floor. Her sister was crouched on the floor, back against the wall. Her eyes were bloodshot and tears glistened on her flushed cheeks. Kara rushed to her sister side, kicking the door closed behind her. Kara squeezed in beside her sister and the bed and put her arm around Alex, pulling her into a warm embrace. “What happened?”
“Maggie left.” Alex choked out, the tears spilling once more from her eyes.
“What! What do you mean!?” Kara exclaimed.
“Remember how she applied for that chem program in Quantico as a joke last year. She got in last week but didn’t say anything. They said she had to be in Quantico by tomorrow or they’d give her spot to someone else.”
“That’s the best chemistry program in the country.” kara breathed
“Which is why I wouldn’t let her stay. I broke up with her so she’d go.” Alex said, breaking down into tears again. She dropped her head into Kara’s lap and began to sob. Kara stroked her sister’s head comfortingly. “Hey, it’s going to be okay, Alex. It’s all going to be okay.”