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There was one night a year, apparently, that the secret alien dive bar that Maggie had introduced her to threw a party.
Not that it wasn’t always a party, you know, with all the drunken alien debauchery that Alex observed Kara participating in, at least sometimes. When Alex pushed just enough, and Kara took her floaty self over to the bar to try and teach the other patrons something resembling pop songs from Krypton. Alex had been nervous, the first time it happened, that Kara would have to be carted out in a ball of alien sadness. Memories of Krypton, even at their happiest and sometimes because of the happiness, could still bring Kara to her knees on a bad day. Drunk-sad Kara? Alex didn’t know what she would do.
It only happened once, and luckily it had been a rare night when J’onn had come out. He had carried Kara out to the car and ridden home with Alex, the sound of Kara’s whimpering in the back. Alex had crawled in behind Kara in bed and held her until she fell asleep.
The rest of the time, telling stories of Krypton and listening to other aliens and humans alike stumble through the Kryptonian singing was enough to make Kara throw her head back and laugh until she cried. This was the Kara that Alex had never been able to resist, and Kara knew it.
Which was why one night, when Alex was feeling particularly warm and fuzzy and Kara had toppled into the booth next to her and scooted as close as...well, alienly possible, Alex had leaned into her and let herself feel. Feel how warm Kara was, how happy Kara was, and remember that whenever Kara was laughing, no matter who she was with, her eyes always searched out Alex’s last.
As if, always, she wanted to be reassured that Alex was just as happy as she was in that moment.
This was why, suddenly, words were falling from Alex’s lips without any preamble whatsoever.
“Want to go to the party with me next week?” Alex murmured, her cheek resting against the side of Kara’s head. Kara giggled and turned her face into Alex’s neck.
“Who else would I go with, silly?” Kara laughed, pulling away and looking up into Alex’s eyes. In spite of the floaty, Kara forced herself to focus more than she really wanted to. There was just a little bit too much purpose in Alex’s eyes.
Alex hesitated for just a moment longer before - “No, I mean. Go...go with me.”
Kara blinked owlishly at her and then tipped her head dramatically onto her hand. “Alex Danvers, are you asking me out?”
Alex jerked slightly, which was really a larger jerk than intended given her state of drunk. She hadn’t expected Kara to pick up what she was putting down quite that fast.
“Um...I…” Alex stuttered until Lucy toppled into the bench across from them.
“Who’s asking who out?” Lucy cackled as she struggled not to face plant into the fries she had fallen down next to. “Ooo! Fries!”
Kara held Alex’s eyes for just a moment longer. “Yes. I will.” She picked her head off of her hand and a grin broke out across her face. “Fries!!”
Alex had sobered drastically in the last thirty seconds and could only continue to stare at the part of Kara’s head where her eyes had been before she had turned away. Wait what.
“Alex!!! Come dance!!” Winn’s voice called out from somewhere near the pool table, seemingly while doing some sort of attempted jerky robot movement with a pool cue in both hands. Maggie was next to him, more focused than Alex had ever seen her, trying diligently to copy Winn’s moves.
“I…” Alex gave one more glance at Kara who seemed to be in the midst of a who-can-fit-the-most-fries-in-their-mouth contest with Lucy, before tripping over herself to clamber onto the bar seat and over Kara before fleeing in Winn’s general direction. “I’ll get the next round!”
*****
Pick you up at 8?
The text from Kara came around noon. Alex was still at the DEO, and she quickly fumbled her phone before clearing her throat and brushing herself off. J’onn watched from the corner of the room where he was talking to Vasquez. Danvers women were really not the most smooth of all people, now were they.
Ok. See you then. Alex sent back quickly and then practically threw her phone onto the table to get it away from her.
There had been no more talk of the party for the past seven days since Alex had (she was pretty sure it had actually happened, right??) asked Kara to the party.
Seven days of Kara acting totally and completely normal.
168 hours of Alex having heart palpitations, wondering if she had completely lost her mind.
What had she been thinking?!?!
*****
Alex had been pacing by the door of her apartment, ready to swoop it open and demand that Kara tell her what she remembered about that night. And, obviously, have her reassure Alex that it was all a big joke of course, because why would she have ever asked Kara anything of the sort in a serious, life changing kind of way.
No one keeps that bottled up for almost a decade and a half and just blurts it out at an underground dive bar full of all of their closest friends...
Right??
That’s probably exactly when that type of thing happens, unfortunately.
“Alex?” Kara called from where she had just flown in Alex’s window. Of course. Kara never used her door. Come on Danvers. Saved from responding for a moment longer, Alex’s phone buzzed in her hand.
Good luck tonight!! ;) The text was from Lucy.
What was happening??
Danvers, don’t pull any of that karaoke shit with her you tried to pull with me, alright. Just because they have it, does not mean you need to sing. Trust me.
From Maggie. How perfect.
Alex’s phone pinged a second later, just as she had been moving to look up at Kara.
I’m kidding, kid. Just be yourself. Or almost yourself...maybe still reign back on the singing.
“Alex….?” Kara sounded very hesitant now, and Alex quickly let her phone fall down to her side. She looked up at Kara to find her adoptive sister fidgeting with her black clutch.
“Is everything okay?” Kara asked, her smile falling away completely as she watched Alex try and form words but with nothing actually coming out. Kara was wearing a knee length, sleeveless, dark red dress that seemed to sparkle in places Alex couldn’t quite figure out. Her hair was up in a bun like it was for work but was slightly looser, seemingly more casual but still neat. She was wearing her glasses, of course, and was fidgeting with them unconsciously.
“Yeah...I...you look...you look really nice, Kara,” Alex stammered, a soft smile hitting the edges of her mouth. Her mind was still reeling from the texts. So she had actually done it?? And Kara was here...like this? And why did everyone know…?? Except...maybe Kara.
Kara hadn’t done or said anything to confirm that she knew about Alex’s question at the bar, only that of course they were going to the party together and she had asked if she could pick Alex up. Nothing out of the ordinary.
Act natural, Alex.
“You look really nice too,” Kara murmured as a blush lightly rose to her cheeks. Alex smiled a little bit wider at the compliment and she grabbed her purse from the table.
“Okay. Ready,” Alex confirmed with the nod. “Want me to call a…?”
Kara had turned back towards the window already but stopped short at the beginning of Alex’s question.
“Oh, I was going to fly us,” Kara hesitated, then held out a hand. “Is that okay?”
Alex couldn’t stop the blush at the question. Flying with Kara always seemed more intimate than it probably should’ve been. Kara had no way of knowing that though...right?
“Oh, yeah, that would be...great,” Alex pursed her lips to try and stop her grin from breaking through completely. They walked over to the balcony together, Kara taking Alex’s hand. “Are you flying in that?”
Kara let go as they got closer and burst away with super speed, returning from Alex’s room a moment later in cape and tights.
“Can you hold this?” she asked Alex, holding out the clutch. Alex didn’t ask questions, just took the clutch and laughed lightly until Supergirl swept her up into her arms. She stopped laughing real quick - Kara was carrying her bridal style.
“Ready?” Kara was looking straight ahead and in the moonlight now so it was hard to tell, but Alex thought her face was flushed again.
“As I’ll ever be,” Alex murmured, and then they were off.
*****
Alex had never crash landed with Kara, not when they were just landing in a normal situation, but this felt pretty damn close.
“What, what happened?” Alex asked, quickly getting up and trying to check Kara all over after helping her out of the garbage bags they’d landed in.
“Ah, nothing,” Kara spluttered, pretending she hadn’t just picked a banana peel out of her hair by tossing it away aggressively, where it landed with a loud SPLAT against the wall. “Just, miscalculated a bit...”
“Okay, well...go change, I’ll meet you inside?” Alex asked after she was content Kara was, in fact, fine (minus the weird nervous muttering.) Kara nodded quickly, grabbed the clutch from Alex and disappeared.
Alex walked into the bar and immediately spotted Lucy and then James (they were doing well on the friendship front, good, she noted), the former of whom immediately wiggled her eyebrows at Alex and mouthed “Where’s Kara?” Alex made a beeline for them just as Kara stepped in the door.
“ What...what exactly is happening ?” Alex tried to stage whisper, but the attempt was futile as Kara sidled over and put a hand on Alex’s side gently. Alex almost jumped a foot in the air. Lucy smirked.
“Drink?” Kara asked and Alex could only nod. Kara drifted away again and Alex whipped around to corner Lucy, but little miss Lane had scooted away to a booth with two alien twins who sometimes frequented the place and like to challenge each other (and Lucy) to a game of how many shots before someone cries.
Alex would never understand that girl.
She glanced down at James who was now studiously eyeing the cherry in his drink. “James...what do you know about this.”
James looked up innocently, eyes confused and unassuming. “About what?”
“Oh my GOD, fine!” Alex threw her hands up and turned back to where Kara had disappeared to.
Only then did she take in the decor; it was a Christmas party, as apparently regardless of your planet of origin, Kara had told her, aliens loved the idea of Christmas.
The Santa decoration in the corner had a sleigh draw up with horses, and the Christmas tree was upside down in it’s holder, but the atmosphere was festive, the drinks were half off and the pool table in the center was almost dripping with tinsel.
Alex wouldn’t want to be anywhere else...until Kara came back towards her, clearly already a shot or two in.
“Hi,” Kara giggled as she handed over Alex’s fruity looking drink. “Look! There’s a mini tree in it!”
Alex looked. The tree was still upside down and apparently to be used as a stirrer, but it was there and an absolutely perfect replica of a decorated Christmas tree. “How?!”
“Mark can shrink things,” Kara giggled again before waving at a blueish purple alien waving shyly in the corner.
“I love it here,” Maggie appeared from behind the two women, slinging an arm around both of their shoulder and jiggling the drink in Alex’s hand. “Sup, Danvers?”
“Sup, Maggie,” Alex practically growled at her, but Maggie had moved on before Alex could finish her words.
“Ooo, here you go,” Kara whipped a hand around from behind her that was holding three shot glasses between her fingers, somehow. They sloshed precariously but didn’t spill. “Almost forgot.”
“Well, thank you for that at least,” Alex rolled her eyes good-naturedly as she took the shot and set the fruity drink down gingerly. She had just tipped the shot back when she spotted Kara pouting - she dribbled a little out of her mouth as she tried to get the shot down without reacting to the power of the pout.
“But I got it just for you!” Kara said quietly, hanging her head as she set her first shot glass down next to her. Alex bemoaned her life internally before picking her previous drink back up and taking a big sip.
So. Much. Grenadine.
Kara perked up immediately however, and tipped back the second of the two other shots she’d had in her hands.
“Kara, how!” Alex grabbed for her hands but Kara danced away, dropping the glass down on the counter this time. “We’ve been here for, literally, five minutes.”
“Don’t worry, one of them was a human strength shot,” Kara said cheerily. “Cookies!”
Lucy was already at the table and actually hip checked Kara out of her way when the alien tried to reach in front of her for a reindeer the size of her hand. Kara appeared seconds later on Lucy’s other side, a plate piled high of only reindeer cookies, including the one that had been in Lucy’s hands.
Alex looked away with a hearty chuckle as Lucy’s eyes widened and her mouth fell open before she lunged for Kara.
Everything seemed so normal that Alex forgot for a moment about what she’d been worrying about nonstop since the last time she had been at this bar.
But only for a moment.
“Alex, Alex,” Mon-El came running out from a rowdy group of humans and aliens clustered around a table playing some sort of confusing Christmas themed game with dice. “I’ve been looking for you everywhere!”
Alex smiled, sure he was a few drinks in.
“Sure! What’s up?” she asked, her eyes drifting off towards where Kara was now hovering above Lucy, eating the reindeer’s head as Lucy clawed at her legs. Occasionally, Kara would drop crumbs and they would fall into Lucy’s hair.
Alex laughed out loud, and only then noticed Mon-El was looking towards the same two people with a look that Alex could only recognize from the mirror.
Lucy? No way. They didn’t even really know each other. Then it had to be…
There was no hope for Mon-El, but no one to save him either.
“I just...I know Kara’s has been partnered with some of the men here,” Mon-El began, and Alex was only going to be able to control herself for, at most, the next minute so god help him to make it quick. “But I was wondering, if now maybe, that she wasn’t…?”
“Nope, sorry, gotta go, not that mentally stable,” Alex rushed out and tipped the rest of her cocktail back as she headed towards Maggie who was trying to untangle a pool cue from tinsel.
“Please, for the love of whatever would make you tell me what’s going on, tell me what’s going on,” Alex practically sobbed out. Maggie triumphantly yanked the cue free and looked up with a victorious grin.
“What? Kara?” she asked nonchalantly as the taller brunette glared and moved closer to her.
“YES Kara!” Alex practically shouted, which unfortunately was plenty loud enough for Kara herself to hear.
It wasn’t like she was constantly tuned in to hear for Alex yelling for help, or anything. Psh. Totally normal, family and...stuff.
“Yes?” Kara appeared before them, having shoved the cookie plate into Lucy’s eager hands before quickly heading over to Alex.
“I, um...I was just...I...can we talk?” Alex asked, putting her hands in her back pockets and biting the inside of her cheek.
“Of course,” Kara replied, blushing at Maggie’s inappropriate hand gestures behind her.
Kara and Maggie had been talking about Kara's crush on Alex for almost as long as Maggie had realized Alex had eyes for someone else. Maggie and Alex's relationship had ended amicably and as soon as Maggie realized Kara had the same heart shaped eyes for Alex that Alex had for Kara, she had set it upon herself to be a respectful third party, available for support if needed.
Until now, of course. Alex had made a move, ready or not, and all bets were off the table.
Maggie wasn’t that nice, after all - it was far too fun to tease her. And Kara. Just a little.
*****
“Look, Kara, I…” Alex started as they walked to a quieter corner of the bar. The music had changed to a version of White Christmas and she pulled out Kara’s chair before sitting down across from her. “I don’t know how to ask this.”
“Ask what?” Kara looked over at Alex, eyes bright.
“I just...do you remember what happened the other night?” Alex squeaked out, closing both eyes before cracking one open and looking at Kara.
“I mean...I thought I did?” Kara looked around, then quickly grabbed a shot out of a passing Winn’s hand.
“Hey!! That’s only human strength,” he muttered as he walked away, a santa hat firmly pushed down on his head. Kara shrugged and downed it.
“What...did you think?” Alex tried to get out. The drinks were hitting her now, and combined with her nerves it was not getting her anywhere fast.
“No, I mean. It doesn’t seem like it was what I thought, it doesn’t matter,” Kara wiped a hand across her face and yanked the bun out of her hair in frustration at the same time.
“Wooooo, letchyo hair down Danvers!” came a holler from across the bar as Maggie spun for no apparent reason, pool cue in hand, almost taking off Winn’s hat at the same time.
“Oh my god, why do we have these friends,” Alex muttered, elbows on the table and face in her hands. Kara laughed and then sat back to look at her companion of all her Earth years.
She was beautiful. And Kara loved her.
“I thought you were asking me out,” Kara said quietly, watching her hands but finally using some of her liquid courage to look up at Alex.
Well. Okay then.
“I was,” Alex said, then stopped immediately. How did these things just keep popping out of her mouth.
“Oh.” Kara blushed again, her face beginning to brighten. “So…”
“So why didn’t you freak out?” Alex fumbled, flustered. “Totally freak-out-about-able!”
“Were you freaking out, when you asked?” Kara asked, shrugging slightly.
Alex thought about it. “No.”
Kara shrugged again. “So I didn’t either.”
“But...nothing is that simple, how, why, what -” she went on rambling until Kara leaned over, a finger to Alex’s lips and Alex fell silent.
“Alex. Nothing has to be anything, if you don’t want it to be,” Kara said softly, letting her finger fall away. Alex felt her lips tingle where Kara’s hand had been. “But...everyone already seems to know, for some reason or another, and they all still love us anyway.”
Alex let the warmness from the alcohol and from Kara wash over her. “But...Mom? J’onn?”
Kara shook her head, tipping it to look at Alex fondly. “ “Mom” asked me about it first. J’onn wanted to ask you himself, but Lucy steered him away from that path very quickly...for fear of his safety if he sprung that on you.”
The music had changed from Christmas music to a remix of something poppy. Alex laughed, eyes glistening slightly as Kara reached out to take her hand.
“I can’t believe it’s this easy,” Alex laughed, sniffing back the tears as she clutched Kara’s hand.
“It hasn’t been,” Kara responded, squeezing back on Alex’s hand and pulling her up. “But that doesn’t mean it can’t be a little bit easier now.”
Alex laughed, twirling Kara around and then pulling her into her side. Kara laughed loudly, head tipped back, bright and beautiful. When Alex looked away from her again, it was to catch the other half of the bar toasting them loudly and cheering.
“You get it girl!” Lucy yelled through her mouthful of cookie, splattering some towards Mon-El who looked positively lost as he sat between her and James.
“I thought they were sisters,” Mon-El whispered to himself, but then Winn walked by in his periphery, santa hat donned and doing his newest dance move, some sort of jigg, and he quickly perked up. “Hey, James, I have a question…”
Alex grinned at Kara, pressing a kiss to her cheek and then pulling her towards the unattended karaoke machine. Maggie yelped and tried to make a run for them, but just as she was passing the bar Lucy appeared and grabbed Maggie’s face in her hands before...planting a wet one right on Maggie’s lips.
“Lane!! What are you doing!” Maggie spluttered.
“Mistletoe,” Lucy shrugged, pointing upwards. Maggie glared at the offending object and then tried to pout...but come on. Lucy Lane was a damn good kisser, mistletoe or not. Lucy looked over at her and winked before squeezing through towards Alex and Kara.
“What’ll it be, ladies?” Lucy grinned knowingly, watching Alex watch Kara like she was the only one in the room. “Queen...Tegan and Sara?”
“Oh my god, Lane!” Alex groaned, but didn’t bother to hide her grin as Kara giggled and started searching through tunes.
“I don’t care, we’ve got all the time in the world,” Kara grinned, picking just the right song and starting it up.
The party turned into a more than once a year thing, after that....But Christmas was always everyone's favorite.