Kara can't seem to get her breathing under control as she rushes out of Lena's penthouse. She bends over, grasping her knees, as she heaves and heaves for oxygen. She can't believe that she just ran away from Lena again. She can't believe that the doctor who was merely supposed to confirm her results has had to hold her hand through so much. Kara gets lost in her train of thought that she shouldn't have gotten Lena so involved in her life. She should have just kept on keeping on as she had been before she found out the cancer was gone. Because, who knows? In the blink of an eye, it could be back. It could be back, and it could kill her still.
By the time she can pull herself out of her funk, she's running late to work. Kara flags down a cab just as Lena struts out the main door of her building. Kara sees the puffy redness under those enigmatic green eyes. She curses herself internally because she knows that she is cause. She practically forced the woman to be her sole emotional support. Just as she hops into the back of the cab and shuts the door, they make direct eye contact.
Lena's breath hitches as she sees Kara looking at her with a forlorn expression written across her face. She lets out a quiet 'fuck' as she realizes that Kara didn't have a ride to work. She should have offered her a ride or gotten a driver for her. She should have been on top of that. She watches, frozen in her steps, as the cab pulls out into traffic. She watches until she can't see it anymore. The doctor lets out a shuddering breath before she pulls her purse closer and heads to the garage. Even after the internal lecture that she needs to loosen her ties with the blonde, she can't help her immediate reaction to try to care for the woman. She really needs to get to her lab.
Kara slowly turns back to face forward in the back of the cab. Silent tears fall down her face. She doesn't have time for this breakdown. She can't. She needs to prepare herself for the onslaught that she will suffer at the hands of Andrea Rojas. And then she has to worry about game night... which is tomorrow. Kara puts her head between her knees and ignores that glances from the driver. She hasn't had to use this technique in ages to put her panic attack at bay. Before she wants it to, the cab pulls up in front off Catco. She takes a moment to gather herself as best as possible before paying the driver and booking it into the building. Despite cursing internally at the speed of the driver, she is thankful that she has a few spare moments to lock herself in her office and change into backup clothes. Just as she finishes tucking her button up into her slacks, a bellow breaks the quiet chatter in the office space.
"Kara Danvers! If you are not in my office in the next 60 seconds, you are FIRED!"
Kara freezes like a deer in headlights. After a few moments of not breathing, not moving, Kara kicks it into high gear and sprints to Andrea's office.
"Ms. Rojas, I am here."
"Oh, look who graced us all with her presence," Andrea says, dripping with sarcasm and faux delight.
Kara's demeanor absolutely hardened. Her jaw clenched, and her shoulders creeped up to her ears. Nearly every muscle is tensed at the tone her boss is using.
"Now, I'm dangerously close to calling down for an HR rep and security to serve you termination papers. You have missed over half of the staff meetings in the past three months. You've missed deadlines. You haven't been at the office. The number of articles you have turned in has declined drastically. And don't even get me started on the qual..."
Kara takes a sharp breath in. She's heard enough. She cuts her boss off, which is a dangerous and not well thought out move. "If you are going to fire me, just fire me. Get it over with. I don't need the third degree if I'm no longer going to be an employee here anymore."
Andrea looks at her timid reporter, stunned. Her mouth ajar, she can't seem to get anything to come out.
Kara bulldozes on, emboldened by the lack of response from her boss. "Yes, I've missed meetings. Yes, I haven't been as present. Maybe you are right that my quality of work has gone down, but I still earned awards. People read Catco because my name is on the byline. I am a journalist that National City trusts. So, yeah fire me. You'll lose a star reporter. You treat your employees like trash. You beat and bludgeon us down. You care more about clicks than hard pressing stories. You know, maybe I should save you the trouble of firing me. Maybe I should just walk out that door and quit. It would save the both of us a headache, wouldn't it?" Kara is panting as she continues to unleash her word vomit. She gets so wrapped up in her monologue, that she accidentally reveals more than she intended. "I didn't survive cancer just to be berated by a boss that couldn't give two shits about her employees."
The room freezes at the admission. A thick silence settles around them. Kara's eyes are giant and unblinking as she realizes exactly what she just said to her boss. She watches as Andrea's mouth opens and closes a few times before she manages to whisper, "S- so, Dr. Kieran..."
Kara lets out a squeak before she bolts for the door. She can barely hear Andrea calling out for her as she rushes into her own office. Kara's back thuds against her own door as she buries her face in her hands. What did she just do? Why did she just do that? She hears loud knocks on her door. She sniffles and pushes herself up. She grabs one of her old messenger bags and starts stuffing her personal belongings into it.
"I- I'm coming. I don't need you to escort me out of the building," Kara mutters just loud enough.
Her office door swings open suddenly. "I didn't call security."
Kara's head shoots up. She figured that Andrea immediately called for HR and security to escort her out of the building.
"I'm going to try really hard not to be the bitchy boss for the next ten minutes," Andrea says quietly after shutting the door. "Kara, can we please talk about this?"
Kara stares at this woman in front of her. It's not the same person who's office she just stormed out of. This person looks... soft... caring, even. She stays frozen, hovering over her desk.
"Alright, how about I start, then? I know I'm a hardass. I push people. I push you. I push because it can get you to work harder. And yes, I care about the clicks because the clicks mean revenue. It means there are more people looking to Catco, even if it's not for news. They will be more likely to see the groundbreaking stories if they are looking in the first place. I know many don't agree with my methods, but my methods are working if anyone looks at the numbers. I've been so furious with you, Kara, because you are an astounding reporter. And you just... disappeared." Andrea lets the silence settle. "Okay, now it's your turn. I explained my behavior. Now, I need you to explain yours."
Kara blinks a few times. Did her boss just try to be... nice? Her notoriously cruel and quite frankly bitchy boss is being nice. She hears Andrea let out a sigh before seating herself in one of Kara's chairs. Blue eyes track the movement. She squints like it's a hallucination that her boss is sitting there, in her office, waiting patiently.
"Does it make it easier if I ask you questions instead?" Andrea breaks the silence.
Kara literally shakes her head slightly to come out of her stupor. She barely whispers out, "I'd rather not talk about it at all. That- that wasn't supposed to come out."
Andrea doesn't let up her penetrating gaze. She rests her elbow on the armrest and tilts her head into her hand. "Well, it's out now. And if you care at all about this job. If you want to keep this job, I'm going to need you to explain just a little bit more. It won't be repeated anywhere else. I won't put it in your employee file. No one will know about it other than me."
Kara looks down at her desk. She flops heavily into her chair as she lets out a heavy breath. "I had cancer. Now, I don't."
"I got that. When were you diagnosed?"
"A- a couple years ago."
Andrea's head jerks up with her eyes wide. Her employee flew under the radar for two years. Her best employee hid it for two years. "I know cancer is always serious... but... how serious?"
Kara pinches the bridge of her nose. She tries to hold back any tears. "The last round of treatment was Dr. Kieran's experimental trial. It- it was a last resort to keep it from... from..."
"Killing you," Andrea helpfully supplies. Another heavy silence blankets them. Kara sniffles as quietly as possible, resisting a full breakdown. "Take the rest of the month off. Pass off any pressing articles you have to William. We will check in during the last week to see if you need more time."
Andrea stands abruptly and moves to the door. Kara's voice cracks, "W-wait? Wh-what?"
"Despite how I present myself... I'm not heartless. I'm glad you are okay, Kara. Sincerely. Please come to me if you need anything else during all of this." Andrea stands at the door with the hand on the knob. Just as she turns it, she stops and looks back at the reporter. "And, thank Dr. Kieran for me the next time you speak with her. Thank her for keeping the best damn journalist healthy and safe. And then, you need to remember to thank her in your acceptance speech when you win a Pulitzer."
Kara stares, dumbfounded, as her boss slips out her door with a quiet click. She can hear Andrea bark orders like nothing just transpired between them. She giggles. She giggles and giggles until she is downright laughing like a mad woman with tears running down her face. The entire ridiculousness of the situation hits her full force. That's exactly how Winn and Nia find her when they swing open Kara's office door. They eye each other like Kara officially lost her mind. And to be honest, Kara did lose her mind. She had to have lost her mind to explain the past thirty minutes with her boss.
"Um," Winn hums lightly, "We, we were just stopping by to ask about game night? Are you okay?"
Nia rolls her eyes at the gentle nudging from Winn. "Who's place is this? Why is the location changing? And why are you all the sudden interested in game night? Is it only because Alex is in town?"
Kara sobers up quickly from the line of questioning and the no nonsense look from the cub reporter. She wipes away the tear tracks from her face as she sits up. She misses Winn's eye tracking the hastily packed up belongings.
"D-did Andrea fire you?" Winn asks with wide eyes.
Nia's jaw actually drops at that. She is quick to assess the surroundings as well. Kara is quick to rasp out, "No, no. I'm just... taking some time off. Um... A friend of mine is hosting it. And she may have a friend come as well. Obviously Alex will be there. James has confirmed that he's going to be back in town from his Metropolis story. Alex and I are grabbing pizzas. James is bringing some appetizers. If you two can cover drinks, I think we will be all set. If- if you guys decide to come, that is."
Winn gives Kara a sad smile and a soft, "Of course, we will be coming. What are you doing with your time off?"
"Speak for yourself, Winn," Nia interjects. "I'll make a last minute decision if I come or not."
Nia walks off as Winn lets out a sigh and lingers by the doorway. "I- I will make sure she comes, Kara. Don't worry about her."
Kara's eyes look a little too dim. "I'm not. And don't push her. It's her decision. But uh, I'll see you tomorrow, then."
Winn nods before he heads back out. The blonde slumps in her chair. She feels exhausted. She slaps her hand on her bag as she gets up and leaves her office space. With the soft click of her door behind her, Kara visibly relaxes as she tightens her grip on her bag and leaves the building. She pulls out her phone and hesitates on who to call. Her favorites list her sister and Dr. Kieran. Her thumb hovers over Dr. Kieran's contact before diverting at the last second.
"Kara! Hey!"
"Hey, Alex. Are you wrapped up with the case you were called in on?"
"Ummm," Alex sighs heavily.
Kara's shoulders slump a bit. "Well, how long do you think it'll be?"
"I- I'm not sure, Kar. I'm sorry."
"Don't be. I understand. Um, well. Just call me when you are off. My- my boss kinda gave me some time off."
"Time off?" Alex asks suspiciously. "Did she fire you? Do I need to kick her ass?"
"No, no, Alex. She just gave me some time off. We can talk about it more later. Just call me when you have some time."
"Alright. Call or text if you need anything, okay?"
"Okay."
"Love you."
"Love you too, sis."
Kara wanders down the street. Instead of hopping on the bus, she decides that she is going to walk. She wanders through the park that leads to her apartment. She thinks about going to a run, maybe hit the gym to start working on her physique again. As she wanders through the park, she nibbles her bottom lip, debating calling Lena. She gets lost in thought and before she knows it, she's wandering into her apartment.
Kara lets out a heavy sigh as she tosses her stuffed bag onto the counter. She heads back into her bedroom to change into some running gear and opts to forgo the gym for now. She really doesn't want to see how little weight she can lift these days. Kara loads up her playlist and and sticks in her headphones. As she stretches, her mind flashes back to the yoga session with Lena. Kara was so focused on studying Lena demonstrate the poses, she never realized how beautiful and serene the woman was. Dr. Kieran is a strong and confident woman; even with everything going on in her life, she is strong and confident. It's everything that Kara wants to be.
Kara throws on her playlist and heads out in a light jog. This time, instead of despairing over how quickly she becomes short of breath, she replays the words of affirmation from the doctor. Her body fought a battle and won. Her body is strong, and her muscles will become strong again too. She survived, and now she will recover. Besides, she needs to worry tomorrow instead. Winn and James will be there. She's nervous that Nia will opt not to show. She has to announce yet again that she had cancer. She turns up the volume before she picks up her space and tries to shut down her thinking.
Meanwhile, Dr. Kieran lets out a shout as she pushes everything off her work table. She plops back into her chair as she grips her own hair. She was just repeating one of her previous experiments to confirm the results, but of course it wasn't behaving the same way. If she can't figure out the flaw, she is going to have to scrap it all. She breathes heavily as she seethes silently. Thankfully, she is in her private lab, away from prying eyes and worried whispers. Her thoughts run rampant about her medicine being a failure, that she will never accomplish her goal to cure cancer. She lets out a bitter laugh at that thought. How many other arrogant doctors believe that they will be the ones the cure the most volatile disease that reeks havoc on the human body.
For a split second, Lena stops beathing. She completely freezes, rooted into her spot. What if the trial didn't actually get rid of Kara's cancer? What if it will be like this failed experiment? What if it comes back? Lena's eyes well up with tears. She understands Kara's fear. She finally understands that fear. She can't even trust her experiments to have repeated results. Why should Kara trust the trial where it is experimental and unproven?
Lena shakes herself in frustration at herself. She should have predicted that. She should have seen that. She should have explained it more thoroughly on that very first day that she met the woman. She whips her head around looking for her phone desperately. She needs to call Kara. She needs to call her and explain the trial. She needs to explain the steps that took place before it ever went to a human study. Lena finds her phone under a pile of papers. She frantically unlocks it and her fingers fly to dial Kara's contact.
A panting voice floats through the phone that vaguely sounds like a 'hello.' Lena looks at her phone to make sure she called the right person. "Kara?"
"Lena?"
"Why are you breathing so heavily? Are you okay?" Lena's concern is palpable, even through the cellular device.
"Yeah, yeah. Sorry. Out for a run. I'll stop."
"Oh," Lena stutters," Y-you don't have to. I- I'm sorry for interrupting."
Kara pants heavily for a few seconds before responding. "Lee, I wouldn't have answered if I didn't want to."
"Oh."
"Did you need something? Or did you just call to chat?"
"Right- right. Sorry." Lena's free hand rests on her forehead with her eyes squeezed shut. "I- I just wanted to talk to you about the trial. I realized that I didn't really explain much of it when you first came to my office."
Kara's heavy breathing stops momentarily. "Is there something wrong?"
"No! No, I'm sorry, darling. There's nothing wrong. I just wanted to explain it more. S-so hopefully some of your questions et answered." Kara lets out a big breath slowly. Lena mumbles a quiet 'fuck' to herself, but Kara still hears it. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to worry you."
"You don't need to apologize, Lee. I appreciate it. A-and I think I would like to talk about the study further. B- but can it wait until after tomorrow?"
"Of course, darling."
Silence lingers over the line. Kara's still beating herself up about the morning. She shouldn't have left that way. She builds up some of this courage and positivity that she was able to harness before asking very slowly, "Lee? C-could I come over tonight? I'll even bring dinner! Just... would it be alright?"
Lena bites her lip. She considers it very briefly. She agreed to follow Kara's lead, and this is Kara asking. "Of course, darling. You are welcome whenever you want."
Kara can't see Lena's tiny smile when she lets out a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Lena."
"No thanks necessary. Just send me a text when you are on your way over. I'm probably heading home for the day."
"Oh," Kara says.
"Oh?"
Kara chews on her lip. She shouldn't impose any further, but she supposes it doesn't hurt to ask. "Well, it's just that... um... I'm off for the rest of the day. Actually for the rest of the month?"
Lena stiffens. "Give me your Ms. Rojas' number."
"No, no. Not like that. I- uh- I accidentally told my boss. And well, she gave me the rest of the month off."
"Oh! Well... I guess... I'm surprised by that based on how she laid into you. But, I'm glad. D- do you want to come over sooner?"
"Will I be intruding?" Kara asks cautiously.
Lena smiles at that. "Not at all. I'll be home in a half hour. Come over anytime after that."
Kara's smile brightens at that. "I'm going to finish my run and shower, and then I'll head over."
"I'll see you then."
Before Lena can hang up, Kara is quick to speak, "Lee?"
Lena hums in response.
"Thank you," Kara says quietly before she hangs up. She resumes her music and takes off on her route again with a giant, goofy smile on her face.
Lena does her best to pick up everything off the lab floor. She doesn't bother to organize it right now, but she does pile it back on her desk. She slips out of her lab coat and gathers her belongings. The smile hasn't slipped at all from her face despite the unfortunate outcomes of the day. She thinks about that fact the entire drive home. Despite getting hurt repeatedly by that sweet and charming hunk, her smile hasn't faded. She wants nothing more than to be around the woman.
Kara pushes herself during the second half of her run. Her lungs are burning, her legs trembling by the time she walks up the stairs in her building. She feels good. Even with the slight scare from Lena, she still feels good. Her headspace is finally in a better place. She had no idea how big of a relief it would be to not have to worry about her job. She's quick to hop in the shower. She turns the water as hot as she can handle, and her mind flashed back for just a moment. Instead of wallowing on her meltdown, she turns her mind to how caring and gentle Lena was. She blushes at the thought of Lena dressing her. She was completely respectful and appropriate the entire time. She never felt safer when so completely and utterly vulnerable.
She quickly washes her body and her hair. She spends just a moment under the hot and steady stream of water and thinks about Lena. She doesn't fully understand what she is feeling, but she knows she is feeling something. She dismisses it as likely due to the doctor taking such good care of her. Kara turns off the water and gets out. She is quick to dry off and get ready. Just as she's about to leave, she pauses for just a moment. It's a moment of wondering if she should pack a bag. She wonders if she should just bite the bullet and plan to spend the night since they have been doing this with a bit of regularity. That way she doesn't have to keep borrowing clothes. But then again, game night will be at her place tomorrow. She'll probably spend the night tomorrow. She should just come home tonight. Lena doesn't need her around for multiple days in a row.
Lena's in the middle of cooking up something for lunch when she hears the elevator announce that someone is on their way up. Once she hears the ding announcing her guest's arrival, she shouts out, "I hope you're hungry! I'm in the kitchen."
Kara lumbers in with a shy smile on her face. "Hey, Lee. Thanks for letting me over."
"Kar, we have been over this. You don't need to thank me."
Kara lets out a playful huff. "Fine. I've been instructed by Andrea to send you her thanks for keeping me alive."
Lena's brows shoot up. "Oh really?"
"Really. She also may have said something about me having to thank you in my speech when I will a Pulitzer too."
"Well, you definitely do not need to do that. No matter what your boss says."
Kara slips onto a bar stool as she watches Lena turn back to her cooking. "Well, I don't necessarily think we have to worry about me having to give an acceptance speech for a Pulitzer."
"Kara," Lena says with warning in her voice. "You bite that tongue of yours. I would put money on you getting a Pulitzer before I get a Nobel Peace Prize."
"Oh you are on, Dr. Kieran." Kara's eyes hold a playful glare. "How much?"
Lena smirks and arches just one of her brows, her competitiveness shining through. "How much does a journalist make these days?"
"What if we bet something other than money?"
"Like...?"
Kara clasps her hands together and purses her lips in thought. "How about dinner? Whoever loses has to take the other person out for dinner and foot the bill?"
Lena scrunches her nose. "We are already enjoying meals together. Shouldn't we do something else?"
"Like what?"
Lena hums as she thinks it over. "Well, what if it is a blank check. Whoever wins can ask for whatever they want at that time."
Kara's adorable crinkle appears. "Blank check? I suppose that could work..."
Lena's grin only gets wider. "Besides, who knows what we will be up to you at that point? Dinner might be quite boring for us and not much of a bet."
"True. Alright, fine. Agreed. Winner gets to pick the prize." Kara thrusts her hand out towards the doctor to seal the deal.
Lena laughs as she puts her utensils down to firmly grasp Kara's hand in her own. They shake a couple times, and Lena swears she could feel Kara's fingertips drag down on her palm as they pulled back. Lena bites her lip as she turns back to plate the food.
"Can you grab some silverware and something to drink?"
"On it," Kara says enthusiastically as she hops off the barstool.
Both women have a similar thought as they move about the penthouse. They move around each other so well, like they have been living together for ages already.