Chapter Text
She woke to the rough scratch of a beard against her cheek and whisper in her ear. “I’m leaving, love. C’mon. Don’t wanna be late.”
She mumbled in acknowledgement and followed the sound of soft footsteps out of the room and away until the front door clicked shut.
Groaning, she threw back the duvet. She pulled herself up to sit on the edge of the bed and called out.
“Alexa! ... Play my morning mix.”
A feminine monotone replied from the kitchen, “ Playing your morning mix. Indie alternative. Starting now.”
A thumping kick drum and driving base-line erupted throughout the apartment.
Grabbing her black frames from the nightstand and sliding them onto her face, Lena started about her morning routine.
Face, washed. Teeth, brushed. Deodorant, check.
Applying a light layer of mascara to long lashes and throwing her hair back into a loose ponytail, she gave herself a quick one-over and called it good for the day.
She walked into her closet, plucking the nearest black tank top from a shelf and thumbing down her color-ordered wardrobe of soft sweaters and long-sleeved button-ups. She selected an emerald flannel from the mix.
Now in National City for just over a month, she mourned the loss of Metropolis’s true sweater weather, but comfort is comfort. She could always roll the sleeves.
Scooping her bag from the couch and toeing on decreasingly white keds, she set off for another day at NCU.
Another day of dragging lectures and breaks spent studying or mindlessly scrolling through her phone at the library before returning home to an empty apartment and waiting for Jack to return from work.
But this is what you wanted , she told herself.
After years enrolled in prestigious private schools and loading her schedule with extra curriculars, Lena needed a break. So when Jack had told her that he was relocating across the country for work, so took the leap and followed. She’d already earned her engineering degree from MIT. What was the harm in completing her grad work at a ... less than rigorous university?
Lena had the rest of her life to join her family in corporate America and work herself to death. She would at least give herself this time to be free, to let loose, to be a normal twenty-something.
Still, she’d become bored. She’d become lonely. She’d become a bit stir-crazy if she was being honest with herself.
Fifteen minutes into endlessly searching through her Netflix queue, her phone pinged on the cushion next to her.
[Jack 5:28 pm] Gonna be a couple more hours here. Don’t wait on me.
Typical, she huffed.
Looking around the apartment for a moment she came to a fast conclusion. She needed to get the fuck out of there.
In an effort to burn some time and energy, Lena threw dark hair back into a sleek high pony, pulled on her favorite leggings and slim-fitted tank top, and headed to the university gym.
An hour of cardio would do some good to work through her frustration.
The evening crowd seemed to be out in full-force. Lena selected a treadmill overlooking the lowered weight room. She popped buds into her ears, cranked the volume, and got to work.
As she pumped her legs, she watched the students in the center of the facility in what could only be described as a mating ritual.
Girls in full make-up and matching designer athletic-wear sauntered around from machine to machine, finding any excuse to stick unfairly toned asses out while the men in somehow even skimpier tanks barely disguised their gawking and occasionally offered to “help” with their form.
To be fair, Lena couldn’t help but admit that it wasn’t a bad view.
She found her gaze coming back more and more to one girl in particular.
A tall blonde in fitted gray joggers and a ragged navy NCU rugby t-shirt with the sides cut off down almost to her waist. Her hair was pulled into a messy bun providing a clear view of muscles straining in her shoulders and back as she lifted forty pound dumbbells over her head.
Not a bad view at all, she thought arching her eyebrows .
After a too-long amount of time, Lena shifted her focus to the girl’s face in the mirror and found the blonde already watching her back through the reflection.
The blonde smiled, threw her a short head nod and resumed her workout .
Heat crept up Lena’s neck, but that’s fine. Just hot from running.
Lena made a point to scan her eyes over the entire facility, pausing at random on one student or another. But inevitably her eyes found themselves once more on the blonde.
She was now seated at a nearby weight bench and Lena was horrified to note that the girl seemed to have been watching her the entire time. The blonde laughed to herself and shook her head slightly.
Cool. Cool cool cool cool cool.
Lena kept her eyes firmly planted on the monitor in front of her after that.
Before too long, a familiar silhouette appeared out her peripheral on the treadmill directly beside her. She looked over, confirming that it was once again the blonde.
The girl mouthed something at Lena with another head nod, unheard over her blaring music.
Lena pulled the headphones from her ear, “What?”
The blonde smiled, the corners of eyes eyes crinkling upwards. “I just said, hey.” She gave a small wave, kicking her machine into motion.
She felt her neck growing red again. “Hey,” she returned, inexplicably nervously. What the fuck, Lena? The girl was attractive, yes, but get it together .
Lena spent the last twenty minutes of her run doing her best to keep her eyes forward. The other girl did not seem to be as concerned.
Lena caught her several times glancing over to Lena’s monitor and matching her strides.
One of those times, Lena looked back and caught her eye with a polite smile. She upped her pace a few notches. The girl, in turn, increased her speed to match.
Not one to back down, Lena accepted the unspoken challenge. She upped the pace once again.
And again the girl looked over to match her. The two continued back and forth until Lena’s legs threatened to give out on her. Finally, she conceded, bringing the machine to a stop and catching her breath.
She plucked her phone from the holder and began walking off when she felt a light tap on her shoulder.
Turning, she found herself face to face with the girl, red-faced and slowly wiping sweat from her brow with a small towel. Lena absolutely did not follow the motion with her eyes.
She raised her eyebrow in question.
“Your keys” the girl huffed out, earnestly. She extended her hand out with said keys in her palm.
Lena blanked. Now getting a proper look, the blonde was even more striking. All lightly tanned skin and lean muscle. Impossibly blue eyes scanned her own and widened, urging Lena into motion.
“Oh. Thank you. Guess I wasn’t getting too far without those...” Lena reached out, careful not to let their fingers brush as she plucked the keys from her hand.
“Ha. Yeah, I guess not.” She took a breath, reaching up slowly, deliberately, to run a hand through her hair and muss it slightly. Is she… flexing? “Well then, see you around,” she called out with a sideways grin and a two-fingered salute.
The blonde back-stepped towards the locker rooms, fully sending herself into a trashcan. Recovering quickly, she caught onto the lid and righted both herself and the bin, chuckling to herself. “Um. Okay, bye.”
“Bye,” Lena half-laughed, offering a small smile to her retreating form.
With both keys and phone in-hand, Lena began her walk home. As she was about to exit the gym a neon orange flyer caught her eye.
HELP WANTED
Seeking lab assistant for on-campus medical study. $15/hour. 10-15 hours per week. Responsibilities include data entry, test monitoring, and light equipment maintenance.
Contact Alex Danvers ([email protected]) for more information.
Interesting.
While Lena didn’t need the money, a part-time job could be a good way to fill her time. And now that she had sufficiently embarrassed herself in the gym, she couldn’t step foot in there again.
And she supposed it would be a solid addition to her resume. Her focus had always primarily been in tech, but gaining a little experience outside of her desired field couldn’t hurt.
She fired off a quick email expressing her interest and made her way home for the night.
As she navigated the city streets back to her apartment, her thoughts drifted back to the blonde.
The attention felt nice. She’s not vain, but she knew she was beautiful. Fair skin, green eyes, a sharp jawline, and long, brown, almost-black hair combined for an all together not awful appearance.
What could she say? Puberty was kind to her.
She was not unaccustomed to attention from both men and women, and also not unaccustomed to her own attention falling on both women and men.
And the blonde certainly had her attention.
She has Jack, sure. They’re happy. But it had been a while since she had felt that spark. And besides, attraction outside of one’s relationship is perfectly normal. Harmless.
A little gym flirting never hurt anyone , she told herself. It was honestly just the pick-me-up that her day needed. Besides, NCU was a large campus. What were the chances that she would even see the girl again?
She ignored the hint of disappointment at the thought of not seeing the girl again.
Though for a brief few moments, Lena let herself fall into the fantasy.
She pictured a few different scenarios where they could both work up a sweat. At the gym. In the shadows of a bar. In her bed. Blonde waves falling around her face as those shoulder muscles worked in other ways.
She shook the thoughts from her mind, grinning stupidly into her chest as she climbed the steps up to her building.
Lena walked through the apartment door, hearing the tell-tale yelling and laughing through the office door of a video game binge sure to last late into the night.
She slipped quietly past and through to their bedroom, cranking the shower to maximum and stripping off her sweaty clothes.
Stepping into the steaming water, she let the heat roll down her back.
Her legs were already sore in a refreshing way that she knew would be reminding her of the mystery girl for days to come.
_______________
The next day her phone rang with an unfamiliar number illuminated across the top of the screen. As a millenial, her first instinct was to screen the call and let it go to voicemail, but the area code was local.
“Hello?”
“Hi, can I speak with Lena Luthor?” a young woman’s voice asked.
“ Speaking.”
“Hi Lena, this is Alex Danvers. With the medical study? ”
“Oh, right. Thanks for getting back so quickly.”
“Of course. We’re a bit short staffed and my other assistant really needs a break, so your email couldn’t have come at a better time. Are you still interested in the position?”
“Yes, definitely.”
“Perfect. We meet two to three times a week. Tuesday and Thursday nights and a few Friday morning sessions. Would that work for you?”
Lena tried not to sound overly eager. “Yes, I can make that work. What would I be doing?”
“Oh, it’s just some simple administrative responsibilities. The study is for my graduate thesis on muscle recovery in relation to certain serums, stimulants, that sort of thing. You’d essentially be working with student athletes to monitor fitness tests and assist with reporting,” she explained.
“Sounds simple enough. And this is safe? And sanctioned? What are the… stimulants that we’re testing?”
“Everything is perfectly safe, I promise,” she laughed. The line paused.
Lena considered that for a moment. Fuck it. “Ok, I’m in. What do you need from me? A resume? Recommendations?”
“Great! Normally I would make you go through the whole resume and interview process, but honestly a moron could do this job… Don’t tell my assistant I said that… and you don’t seem like a moron. Can you come to the lab this Thursday?”
“I’ll be there,” Lena promised.
“Sounds good. Welcome to the team. I’ll shoot over all of the details this week and we can go from there?”
“Works for me, thanks for the opportunity.”
“No, thank you, really... Ok cool, we’ll I’ll talk to you then. Later.” The line went dead.
It was definitely one of the stranger interviews she had done, but she appreciated that this Alex Danvers seemed to at least be a straight shooter. Worst case scenario, the job is awful, she quits, and it's back to square one, but at that point Lena just needed something to keep her busy.
_______________
Thursday night rolled around and Lena was eager to get to the lab. She took the elevator up to the third floor of the ESS building and found the door marking the location Alex had sent her. Pulling the handle, she poked her head into a brightly lit, clinically white windowless room.
When Alex had said they would be in a lab, Lena had pictured … a lab.
This room more closely resembled a physical therapy facility. A treadmill and racks of brightly-colored medicine balls were surrounded by cushioned mats and took up the entirety of the right side of the room, while a couple of small desks were cramped together on the left along with a single padded treatment table.
A couple of voices floated out from a door cracked open on the back wall labeled ‘Private’.
They seemed to not have heard that Lena had arrived, so she walked back, knocking lightly.
“Come in!” a familiar voice called.
Lena opened the door fully to reveal a cozy, yet plain office space. In place of fluorescent bulbs, a floor lamp in the corner provided a softer glow than the previous room.
A young woman slightly older than herself sat behind a gray metal desk. She was leaned back to an almost dangerous angle in her chair. Low-rise boots crossed over each other on top of the desk. She swung her feet to the ground and stood as Lena entered the office.
“You must be Lena. Alex Danvers. Nice to meet you,” she greeted in a professional tone, holding her hand out for a firm handshake. She released her hand, indicating to the shorter woman in the chair beside her desk. “And this is Eve.” Lena nodded to her as well.
The two made for a strange pair.
Alex’s overall vibe was in a single word badass. Her dark eyes seemed friendly, but intense. Pale skin contrasted against auburn hair, almost shaved on one side and chopped into a severe bob on the other. And she looked far too comfortable in her black leather jacket and boots. Lena would bet her life that the girl rode a motorcycle.
Eve, on the other hand, screamed kindergarten teacher. Her blonde hair fell in bouncing curls just past her shoulders. She wore comfortable looking jeans and a flowy blouse with blue flowers perfectly matched to her doe eyes.
“Hey, Lena. It’s so great to finally meet you!” she chirped in a high, almost superficially-sweet voice. “It’ll be good to have someone else around here.”
“Glad to be here,” Lena responded politely. She ran a hand through her hair and looked around the space. “So, what exactly do we do ?”
Alex moved around the desk and motioned for the two to leave the office. “Nothing crazy. I’ve been working on different solutions to induce bursts of energy for athletes while also encouraging fast muscle recovery. Think pre-workout, but not garbage for your body.”
She moved to stand in the center of the room while the two assistants followed closely.
“I’ll be handling all of the chemistry. What I need from you is to be the facilitator.”
She motioned to the exercise equipment. “The subjects are going to come in weekly and test different solutions. It’s just a drink, don’t worry. No needles or anything. You’ll take them through the fitness routines -- adjust the difficulty up or down depending on the person as you see fit.”
She pivoted on her heels and pointed to the other side of the room. “And then record the results -- blood pressure, heart rate, that sort of thing -- into the database. Easy.”
“Easy,” Lena agreed.
“Ok great. I’m going to let Eve show you the ropes while I knock out some reporting in my office. Let me know if you guys need anything... but don’t need anything, yeah?” Alex asked, already walking away, closing the door behind her.
Eve turned to Lena, smiling. “So! You can have this desk here. I’ll get your login set up for you, no problem.”
She shuffled some folders around on her desk, picking some from the bottom. “We can split the participants in half. Yikes! It’s been a lot covering everyone. You don’t know how happy I am that Alex finally found another assistant. Not that I don’t love it here! It’s just a lot. You know, school and everything. Anyways, we have a couple of the men’s soccer players coming in this evening. I’m going to keep those for myself... But! You can shadow me for today and then should be ready to go after that! I’m usually around if you need anything anyways. Or Alex. She’s great. You’re gonna love her.”
Lena wasn’t sure when or if the girl had breathed. “Um, yeah. Alex seems...great?”
Eve chuckled, “She’s actually pretty cool. She just takes a bit to warm up to new people. You’ll see.”
“I’m sure that I will.” Lena reached out, grabbing one of the folders in front of her. “Okay, let’s get to it, I guess.”
Lena stuck to Eve’s side for the rest of the evening. True enough, a couple wiry men showed up to the lab not too much later. She watched as Eve doled out the fitness regime, pushing them to the limit all the while maintaining her sweet demeanor. She was like a drill instructor possessed by the Cheshire Cat. The ending combination tended to make her look a bit manic at times, but she proved to be a fun partner.
The tasks themselves were simple enough. Alex wasn’t wrong about a moron being able to do this job.
Lena picked everything up quickly and though she was eager to help as a facilitator, what she was really curious about was the actual science behind the study. She’d have to find a way to get on Alex’s good side and in on the real action. But that was a task for another day.
As the trio was packing away and wiping down the equipment for the night, Eve turned to the other two, cocking her head to the side. “Hey, you know, we should go celebrate Lena’s first day! Would you guys maybe want to go grab a couple of drinks?”
Alex brightened at that. “You know I’m game. Harper’s?”
“Umm... you know I don’t know. I should really be getting home,” Lena said as her phone buzzed in her pocket.
“Aw, come on, Luthor. A drink won’t kill you,” Alex drawled.
[Jack 9:32 pm] going to the pub with guys, see you later!
“You know what? Drinks sound great. Let’s do it.”
“Fantastic!” Eve cheered, clapping her hands together.
_______________
Several hours later, emptied bottles and pint glasses littered their high top.
“So, my mother comes home from her board meeting and sees Sebastian grazing on her prized flower beds, Lex and I in a panic, and the rest of the horses running rampant across the property.” Lena gestured wildly. “It took us ages to get them back into the stables. Mother was furious. I mean, fair, but still. It was a while before we were left unattended after that.”
“That is… extremely unrelatable. Some real rich people shit right there, Luthor,” Alex slurs pointing at her with a half empty bottle, as Eve laughed into her drink.
“Yeah, well. If you were cooped up in the estate all summer, you would find ways to entertain yourself too,” Lena chuckles. “Lex was great though. We used to be close growing up. I always wanted to be just like him, always following him around like a puppy.”
“And now?” Eve asked genuinely.
“And now he’s Mr. Big Bad CEO of the family business. Too busy for his kid sister,” Lena said with a far away look.
“That’s too bad,” Alex said, softening her tone. “I couldn’t imagine not being close to my sister. She’s my best friend.”
“I didn’t know you had a sister!” said Eve, leaning forward on her stool looking exaggeratedly scandalized.
“No? Surprised I haven’t mentioned her. She’s actually here at NCU. I tease her all the time about following me around like a puppy... for being a puppy too... but the truth is...I would miss ‘er if she’d gone anywhere else.” Alex smiled fondly. “She’s a pain in the ass, but I love ‘er.”
“D’awwww,” Eve drew out, bringing her hands to her cheeks.
“Oh hush,” Alex said swatting her arm with an eye roll. “Alright, one more round, les do it.”
“I’m calling it, ladies,” Eve slapped her palms on the table, rattling the litany of empty glasses. “Mike is picking me up in a few. Good niiiight,” she said with a wink walking off to settle her tab.
“Gross,” Alex muttered. “What about you, Luthor? Don’t leave me hanging here.”
Lena checked her watch, noting the late hour. They all had a shared shift in the lab the next morning and she really should have gone home a while ago, but hey, the whole point of all of this was to get out more.
“One more,” she promised. “But then I really do need to go home.”
“I knew I liked you.” Alex lazily finger-gunned at the younger girl as she turned towards the bar. “Last round is on me.”
While Alex was at the bar closing them out and grabbing their drinks, Lena pulled out her phone to make sure Jack wasn’t waiting up on her. Nothing.
Alex returned with two short rocks glasses of amber liquid.
At Lena’s raised eyebrows, Alex shrugged. “What? Don’t tell me Miss Boarding School doesn’t drink scotch.”
“Fair point,” she chuckled. Lena accepted the drink, swirling the liquid around her glass. “Holding one’s liquor was an important condition of graduating St. Agnes.”
“Hey, public school will get the job done just as well,” Alex informed her. “Hmm, boarding school,” she sighed dreamily. “It always sounded so great growing up on Harry Potter. And all girls? Probably would have figured a few things out sooner if it were me.” She said the last part to herself more than anything.
“Mmm,” Lena mused. It was certainly good for that as well. Sensing Alex’s shift in mood, she took the opportunity for a quick change of subject. “I didn’t peg you for a Harry Potter nerd.”
“That’s ‘cause you haven’t met my sister. There was no choice.”
“She sounds great,” Lena commented neutrally.
“The greatest. I love her.”
“You mentioned that,” Lena laughed. “I think it’s sweet.”
“She’s the sweetest too!” Alex’s eyes lit up, leaning her chin forward onto her hand. “She’ll act like she’s all tough, but I know better. She’s mush. All mushy on the inside.”
“I suspect that you two have that in common?”
“Hey, watch it, Luthor. I’m tough.” Alex said suddenly serious, though her glazed eyes gave her away.
“Yes, very tough, Danvers . That’s very apparent right now.” Lena said pouting her lips out, closing her eyes, and nodding her head.
She drained the last of her scotch and watched as Alex did the same. “Speaking of your sister, do you have a ride home? The last thing I need is to be out of the job because my boss couldn’t make it home from the bar.”
“Only a couple blocks away. I can make it.”
Laughing, Lena grabbed her bag and stood from her stool. “C’mon, Danvers. I’ll walk you.”
Alex stood on shaky legs and draped her arm over Lena’s shoulders. “You’re a good egg, Luthor.”
After making sure Alex made it safely up to her apartment, Lena called a cab home. Granted, it was a short distance, but she knew better than to walk the streets alone at this hour.
Sliding the key in and turning, Lena quietly opened the door to a dark apartment.
She found Jack sprawled across the bed. Tiptoeing in the dark, she changed into shorts and an oversized tee before slipping under the covers.
Subconsciously sensing her, Jack rolled over and threw his arm around her middle. She fell asleep quickly to soft snores in her ear and the smell of whiskey on his breath.
_______________
Despite the late night, Lena was wide awake far too early the next morning. She spent twenty minutes willing herself back to sleep before giving up, deeming it useless.
She packed a few of her notebooks into her bag and decided to head to campus a little early for a coffee and a greasy croissant before her shift in the lab.
She found a small cafe on campus, ordered a large coffee, and found a comfy booth in the back of the shop while she waited. Before too long, her name was called at the counter.
Thanking the barista and tossing a few bills into the jar, she grabbed her cup and turned to leave the shop.
No sooner than she spun around was she forced into a jolting stop, just barely missing the person standing closely behind her. She’d spilled some coffee down her front in the process. Perfect.
She looked up to find none other than her mystery girl from the gym, looking far too good for 8 am on a Friday. Perfect.
The girl was once again in cut-off gym clothes, but this time paired with a dark NCU snapback covering long, wavy blonde hair and thick-framed glasses. It’s a look that really shouldn’t work for Lena, but really does.
“Oh dude, I am so sorry…” she said reaching out to stabilize Lena by her shoulders and craning her neck to the side, “...Lana. I’m so sorry, Lana.”
Lena gave her a puzzled look.
“Your cup,” she clarified, remembering to let go of Lena and pointing to the name scrawled across the side.
“Oh,” she said, feeling silly . “Um, it’s Lena, actually... They never get it right,” she said waving her hand vaguely.
“Well, Lena, then. That was my bad. I wasn’t thinking.”
She moved to brush at the coffee on Lena’s chest before stopping midair and retracting her hand as if burned, her cheeks coloring slightly. “Lemme buy you a drink or something to make up for it?”
The blonde may have had a bit of a bro-y air to her, but she had kind eyes and seemed sincere enough.
Lena raised her cup a little higher in the air. “I already have a drink… it’s really okay. Thank you, though.”
“Yeah… I guess you do.” She paused for a moment before continuing. “Well, hey, if I know your name, I guess it’s only fair that you know mine.”
She extended her hand out, smiling wide. “Kara, part-time klutz, part-time excellent coffee companion, at your service.”
Amused, Lena reached out to grasp Kara’s offered hand. It was softer than she had been expecting. Not that Lena was expecting anything. “It’s nice to meet you, Kara. Excellent coffee companion, huh?”
Kara threw her a smug smile, puffing out her chest and brushing some imaginary lint off her shoulder.
Oh my god, what a dork. A cute dork, though.
“I don’t mean to brag. That’s just the word on the street. And after all, I did save you from a night of tracking down your keys.”
Lena pretended to be taken aback. “Oh, so I owe you now?” she deadpanned.
“No! No, that was stupid. I’m stupid,” Kara backtracked, muttering to herself and looking slightly panicked.
Lena decided to take pity on her. She reached out to lay her hand on a firm bicep. “Kara, I’m kidding. I’m just surprised you remembered me, to be honest.”
“Well, yeah. You have a face that’s hard to forget,” she mumbled so quietly to herself that Lena wasn’t sure that she had meant to say the words aloud. But she had.
Before Lena could dwell too much on that comment, she became distracted by a man attempting to shuffle through the small space between them and the counter.
“Oh, we’re in the way,” Lena said, stepping off to the side and hoisting her backpack further onto her shoulder. “Look, any other time and I would love to, honestly, but I really was just on my way out.”
Kara deflated slightly, but forced a smile back onto her face. “Okay, yeah, sure. No worries.”
Lena took a couple of steps away before turning back, “But I hope this isn’t the last time we talk?”
Kara’s smiled reached further to her eyes, “I hope not either.”