Super

Chapter 19: Plot, Counterplot

Smiling to herself, Lex plugged her phone back up to the charger and slowly changed clothes to go downstairs. Just as she turned to leave, however, she heard a knock at her door, and then Casey came in with a tray of food.

“Hey,” Lex said, a little confused, “I was just coming downstairs to help you.”

Casey smiled as she pushed the papers on Lex's desk to one side and set the tray down, the steaming bowls on it emitting a savory scent that made Lex's stomach growl. “I figured you'd try, so I knocked off a little early today and started cooking so that everything would be ready right around when I figured you'd be waking up.”

Lex smiled at her friend's cleverness. “All right. Thanks for thinking of me.”

“You should be resting, not cooking,” Casey said with a shrug. “Here, have something to eat.”

The two of them sat on the couch in Lex's small living area and ate in silence for a few minutes, Lex noting that the lentil stew, the idea of which she hadn't been too crazy about earlier, tasted delicious, savory and filling, and went really well with the nutty bread that Casey had brought to eat with it. Finally she remembered her conversation with Clara earlier and caught Casey's eye.

“Hey, I forgot to tell you. I asked Clara if you, Riss, and I could go out to dinner or something to celebrate finally being finished with that security job.” She met Casey's eyes then, hoping the other woman wouldn't find it too strange.

Casey raised an eyebrow. “I didn't really do anything for that, though.”

“Are you kidding? You cooked for us at least once a week and kept us sane through the whole thing. Anyway, come on, don't you think it would be fun?”

“Yeah,” Casey agreed with a laugh. “So when are we going?”

“Don't know,” Lex said around a mouthful of stew, “I'm still waiting to hear if it's been OK'd.”

They both rolled their eyes knowingly and smiled at one another.

“By the way,” Casey said, chewing on some bread, “don't talk with your mouth full.”

The two of them started giggling but ended up nearly falling off the couch laughing. When they finished eating, Casey insisted on a bath for Lex and stayed with her, chatting and washing her hair, until the water went cold. Lex could feel the now-familiar pain behind her eyes as she brushed her teeth and got ready for bed, but decided to just tough it out. Yawning widely by the time she crawled under the covers, Lex watched Casey chuckle as she stood near the edge of the bed.

“Get some sleep. If you start to feel bad in the middle of the night or you need something, just call me and I'll come over, OK? I should hear you if you shout, or you can call me on my cell phone.”

“Yes, Mom,” Lex said with a grin, then, a moment later, her face turned serious. “Casey,” she started again as the taller woman began to turn away, “thanks for taking care of me.”

Casey touched Lex's shoulder as she reached to turn the bedside lamp off. “I'm glad to, Lex. That's what friends are for. Good night.”

“Good night,” Lex replied, feeling warm and happy as she heard her door close behind Casey and drifted away into sleep.

The rest of the week seemed to hurry by, but Lex had a start as she checked the holder by her door Friday morning. Along with her schedule, which she was happy to find Mr. Chen's name on again, she found a formal-looking piece of card paper with an invitation on it. As Lex read she realized her request had been approved. The invitation asked those invited to dress for dinner and be ready to leave by six on Saturday evening for a meal to celebrate recent accomplishments.