WHAT: Relationship talks over date night dessert WHERE: Pastrysphere WHEN: Tonight WARNINGS: Some very minor talk of future Vallo, that's it STATUS: Complete
It should come to the surprise of no one, least of all Lena Luthor, that one of Kara’s first tasks upon arriving in Vallo was cataloging the restaurants Vallo City boasted. While she hadn’t written up her self-made Zagat, every unique-to-Vallo restaurant had been visited, dined at, and rated on her own personal scale. It was a way to make time pass when she was, essentially, on her own. She had Sara, and she’d started to slot into Catra’s life in Alex’s absence, but she didn’t have her people.
No Alex. No Lena. No J’onn. No Superfriends of any kind. Instead, she had L-Corp, Defense Team, and whatever other little projects she assigned herself.
With her speed and bottomless pit of a stomach, the process had been quick and efficient, finished long before Lena re-arrived in Vallo. It was still the guide she consulted most nights because, as Lena had rightly pointed out, neither of them were the most kitchen-savvy. The idea of cooking classes had been floated, but they hadn’t taken the plunge to sign up just yet. Maybe they’d find some summer sessions soon; for now, Kara was content to continue on as they’d been.
Tonight, however, was specifically date night. That meant dressing up in something nicer than their usual work clothes and putting up a little less fight when it came to splitting the bill. Since dinner was Lena’s pick that evening, Kara had chosen dessert – a modern little bistro called Pastrysphere that only served dessert, specifically a variety of oversized cupcakes sold in pairs for couples.
They were seated at a wrought-iron table on the shop’s front patio that evening, glasses of champagne flanking each of their cupcakes. Lanterns and fairy lights cast a warm glow around them and a few other scattered patrons. It was cozy and romantic, and Kara reached out to give Lena’s wrist a squeeze.
“So, what do you think?” she asked, brows raised and smiling earnestly. “I told you the new raspberry dark chocolate was amazing, right?”
Calling them ‘oversized’ didn’t do these desserts justice. They were – fairly massive, and Lena knew just by stepping into this place that she wouldn’t be able to finish one herself. Or half of it, if she were to be honest, which was devastating considering she worked hard to save room after dinner. It wasn’t a bad problem to have.
They’d been doing this more often. Date nights. There wasn’t a point in killing herself with work duties. Between L-Corp and taking up teaching math classes at the Outlander school, Lena had a full schedule during the day but she was attempting this thing, you see – where work was only done during work hours. After hours were for other things.
For friends. For Kara. Lena had experienced a slight overlap in memories from the Dystopian Vallo phenomenon and if there’s one lesson she learned, it was this: make time for those you love, no matter what.
Nothing was more important than that.
“I think I’m going to go into a coma,” she began after dragging a spoonful of chocolate from her mouth, the taste bittersweet on her tongue, “and that you'll carry me back home. Which I know isn’t even an inconvenience for you but I’m very envious about your metabolism right now.”
Kara laughed and pulled her hand back to better pick up her dessert with both hands. There was silverware available to be used given their size, and that probably would have been proper in a place like this. But she could stay neat even using her hands, and it gave her the ability to take fuller bites. She wasn’t going to turn that down.
“Well, don’t be too envious,” she said, “because eating that many calories is not an easy task, I’ll have you know. It’s pretty exhausting, actually.” She grinned, betraying the absolute lie that was. She was a glutton for foods of all kinds, but she was especially ravenous when it came to Earth desserts.
Lena rolled her eyes. Yes, she knew that was an absolute lie but it was date night – it wasn’t romantic to call her out on her bullshit. But maybe after she worked on polishing off her champagne, as that was also dessert in itself. “Such a burden,” she moaned against her spoon with a flair of dramatics, brushing back some hair (not done in a tight ponytail for once) behind her shoulder. “Guess that means I’ll also have to help you burn off those calories, hm?”
At first, they had started this entire thing very slowly. She needed time to figure out how to navigate Vallo without Alex, and Kara managed to be the personification of patience through that. Then they confessed those three, important words during Valentine’s Day – and that just led to cuddling and a sleepover that involved clothes.
Then the news of a potential future propelled their relationship forward – much like it had done for her and Alex – and she did her best to let it go and let it happen. They’ve been working together closely and continue to do so. Perhaps… lived together? When had Kara been to her apartment in the past few weeks? Not that Lena was complaining about it, gods no.
“So I have… a question for you,” Lena brought up, using her utensil (she wanted to keep her hands clean, thank you) to toy with her cupcake. “Okay, maybe not so much of a question as an observation, or - both, perhaps.” She leaned an arm against the table, warm eyes on Kara. “But we’ve… moved pretty fast, haven’t we? In our relationship.”
Kara grinned at Lena’s suggestion. She never went into date night – or any night – expecting sex, but she wasn’t one to refuse either. Superpowers weren’t the only shift under a yellow sun; Sol had supercharged her libido as well, and the yellow sun they had in Vallo (which may be the same, she still hadn’t entirely decided) had kept that pattern up.
In essence, she was an endless solar battery. Having a partner willing to keep up with that was a blessing. Especially someone she loved as deeply as she loved Lena.
Dessert first, though. And conversation. And gazing at Lena with awe in her eyes because, Rao, how was this her luck? A gorgeous, intelligent woman who loved her, despite all she’d put her through, despite all the hurdles they’d encountered. She hadn’t been in any rush for this, and she’d have waited longer if Lena asked for it without hesitation, but she was glad they’d moved forward. She was glad she didn’t have to stick in the best friend role, and they were finally on even footing.
She had a pretty big chunk of cake in her mouth when Lena brought up just that – the state of their relationship. Her eyes briefly went wide and she reached for the cloth napkin on her lap, pressing it against her mouth with both hands to coax herself to swallow a bit faster. When she had, her eyebrows drew together and she studied Lena with a mix of concern and apprehension.
“We have,” Kara agreed, because there was really no sense arguing it. Two months ago, they hadn’t been here; they’d been dancing around it, but it could have been months or years off still, whatever Lena needed. She reached across the small table, palm up in the hope Lena would take her hand. “Was it too fast?”
Lena did, in fact, take her hand. There was no hesitation there. A smile had curled her lips – one of her most favorite things was to watch Kara eat, and it was always quite the adorable spectacle. “It was fast,” she agreed, but she didn’t mean that in a way that was detrimental to their relationship. “And this is not a complaint, never a complaint.”
To make her point, she drew Kara’s hand close to her mouth, and placed delicate kisses against her fingertips. “I guess this is me just checking in,” Lena continued, chuckling against them. “We’ve spent a lot of time enjoying being wrapped around one another, and I would like to continue doing that. But I’m a little hazy on what milestone we’re currently on.”
They did things very… out of order.
Some of the concern melted off Kara’s face, and she felt herself relax with Lena’s reassurance and those small kisses. She squeezed the hand in hers gently and smiled across the table. She hadn’t necessarily thought it was a complaint, but she had worried it was a request to reel back. Which it still might be, in a way, and that was fair. She hadn’t intended to rush, but given the point in time she’d come from, there hadn’t been much hesitation once she was given the all-clear.
“We kind of hit everything all at once, didn’t we?” The chuckle that followed was a bit sheepish, and she raised her free hand to clasp around Lena’s, too. “I think we’re beyond just dating.” She searched out Lena’s eyes. “I’ve just been floating along on ‘we’re together’ and going with the flow. I’ve been happy that way.”
It was all too easy to fall into that flow with Lena. They spent nearly all their time together, at work, at home. There was no space, and she hadn’t been looking for any, assuming if Lena needed something different, she would say so. Lena Luthor was, notoriously, not the type to pull her punches.
“What do you think? I know how analytical that mind of yours can be.”
Oh, they were definitely beyond dating. That phase didn’t exist. Lena hadn’t traversed a relationship without those few initial dates of trying to get the feel of the other person and figuring out the chemistry (in a metaphorical sense, for once) - if it existed. She didn’t need to figure that out with Kara.
She had it with Kara.
“That I’m happy,” she answered simply. “I’m not–worried, or anything. I’m not a stickler for tradition and I don’t think every relationship has to follow the same formula to work. All of this just feels…” Lena sucked in her bottom lip, biting on it to think for a moment. “Different, and in the best way. Honestly, our friendship could be so intense sometimes that it felt like we were already dating at times. You always made sure I had my favorites, and–”
Lena brought the flute up to her lips, mumbling against it as she went on. “I did buy a media empire just for you once. I had some spare change laying around.”
“Sure, I always suspected you found that spare seven hundred fifty million just stuck between your couch cushions,” Kara chuckled. She remembered well how surprised she’d been when Lena had stepped in and bought out CatCo when Cat stepped down. She’d convinced herself it was due to a genuine interest in the industry, but rumors had flown through that building about the real motive.
Turns out, those gossip mongers had been right all along.
She pulled Lena’s hands to her lips, gently kissing her knuckles. “It did feel like we were dating early on,” she agreed, smile turning a little wistful. “I wished we were, more than you know. But I was still keeping my secret, and I was afraid I’d put you in danger if I told you, and–”
She stopped there, lips pressing together. There was no sense rehashing the pain she’d put Lena through by keeping her secret for so long. She’d truly thought she was doing the right thing, in a certain way, and she had regrets. But they’d come through it, and that was the important part. It got them to where they were now – no more secrets or lies between them.
“I’m yours now,” she grinned.
Oof, that was broaching a sensitive subject. Lena wasn’t sore about it as she once had been. There were some tender spots here and there, moreso about her own behavior (her own malicious deceit, the Kryptonite, everything). Thinking back, it felt like a genuine miracle that they’d gotten to this point – Luthor and a Kryptonian, together.
It was a shame Kara was sitting across from her instead of next to her. Lena would be having her kiss her lips instead, not her hand.
“I plan on keeping you,” Lena smirked, regretfully pulling her hand away from Kara for the sake of dessert. It was a bold claim considering where they were, and what had happened with Alex – someone she was supposed to have a future with here – but she had the chance to try and go all in with Kara. She was taking it. “The same goes for back home. And speaking of home...”
Lena scooped up some cupcake with her spoon (utensils kept her hands clean, let her use them) and offered her a taste. “I don’t mind you moving in permanently. You’re already there all the time.”
Kara pouted for the briefest of moments when Lena’s hand left hers but that pout shifted right back into a grin when Lena offered the spoon to her. She leaned forward and took the offered bite, humming her approval as it hit her taste buds. Yep, they had made good dessert choices, and she could easily sit here and eat much, much more.
“If you’re sure, then I’d like that.” She decided to follow in Lena’s example and continue eating with her spoon, like a grown-up. “I know we jumped in faster than either of us intended, so if you need space, I just need you to tell me, okay?”
She wouldn’t take it personally at all. Being a couple was new for both of them, and it came with its complications, most of which they’d moved past. But that didn’t mean there wouldn’t be rough spots. She wanted to do her best to make sure she stayed open and communicative so whatever came their way, they could get through it together.
“I have no issues telling you what I need,” Lena said, reinforcing that point with a sharp raised eyebrow – because, yes, that was also in reference to other things. “But I’ll let you know. I don’t really foresee it happening? If we weren’t,” she waved the spoon between them, “involved, I’d still want you around all the time.”
They were best friends first and foremost and despite having felt utterly discouraged at first in even pursuing anything with Kara, that is what she latched onto and what had mattered the most. Her friendship. Now she had that and more, so much more.
Her heart sometimes ached over losing Alex (it’s hard when it’s not a mutual breakup, when it’s not a definitive oh, this isn’t working, when it was a decision made by a world with powers that remained unexplained and you just had to make the choice to hold on or move on), but that was separate from her love for Kara.
“And I don’t want to be that person that is in a relationship with their work more than they are with an actual person,” Lena added with a sigh, dropping her utensil onto her plate. “I caught a glimpse of where that direction could have taken me, and - I just want to soak up moments with you.”
Plate clean, Kara grabbed her chair and pulled it around the small, circular table to sit closer to Lena, leaning in to kiss her cheek. “You,” she said softly, “were trying to help a world that had fallen apart. I hope you know I could never hold that against you.”
She’d gotten a few standout memories of the timeline they’d had to fight to repair not long after as well. Most of it was just feelings, but there were a few very vivid memories. It was odd to think about, knowing that they weren’t on that path anymore – hopefully, at least. But there was an odd fondness for it in her heart, too. It had given her Lena and a beautiful little family to look forward to, even in a world that had been razed by a horrific monster.
“I do trust you to tell me your limits,” she went on, smoothing past that subject and reaching out to snag Lena’s hand in her own again. “And I love being with you all the time, so I’ll happily move in officially.” She had made only intermittent trips back to Morningside in the past several weeks, anyway; cleaning out the last of anything that remained there wouldn’t take long.
Lena’s own experiences of that future were vague impressions, a few flashes here and there but this inherent feeling of guilt that clung hard. Snippets of an argument, a little girl that was very much the spitting image of Kara looking at her as if she was a relative that visited only for the holidays – that stuck as well. It was an uncomfortably visceral feeling.
She never thought she’d hate caring about the world – any world – until that moment.
Having her hand captured snapped her out of those thoughts, thankfully, before she ripped a hole right into her bottom lip with how she’d been biting into it again. “It’s like a permanent best friend sleepover,” Lena smiled, cheeks dimpling. “But the clothing is optional and there’s limited privacy. I love it. Except the nightly desserts have to stop. I’m going to have to be attending more spin classes while you remain unaffected.”
Kara laughed, her gaze on Lena unfailingly loving as those dimples appeared on her cheeks. She’d always thought Lena was beautiful, everything about her, but there was something about this particular smile that always made her heart beat faster. It was the most genuine of her smiles, the happiest, and Kara would know – she’d memorized the sight of every one of them over the years.
“I’ll take classes with you, bestie,” she teased, raising her free hand to stroke down the curve of Lena’s cheek. “And we’ll limit the desserts to… twice a week, how’s that sound? I mean, you shouldn’t deprive yourself completely of dessert, that would just be rude.”
“Taking classes with you is a whole new level of embarrassing now that I know you faked all your struggles the last time,” Lena shot back, meaning to tease versus broaching the topic of secrecy – poking at their past with a little bit of humor couldn’t hurt. “Twice a week is an acceptable limit. And this, here–”
Her plate was pushed towards Kara.
“This is something you’ll have to finish for me. I surrender. My white flag is up. I’m done.”
There were so many layers of deception that had come with keeping her secret as long as she had. Kara regretted all of them, even something that seemed as innocuous as looking like a spin class required exertion. No matter how she justified it, she knew it would never make what she’d done less of a sting for Lena.
But she took the teasing gracefully, cheeks turning a bit pink but otherwise unbothered, because she knew it was a tease, coping with humor. She accepted the plate with an eager smile and equally eager blue eyes, but before she dug in, she raised her hand to grasp Lena’s chin again.
“I love you,” she said softly. “Kiss me, please. I could use the motivation to finish off your dessert.”
That was a request she loathed to ever even think of refusing. Kara’s closeness made it a simple task, allowing her to close the distance without much effort to meet her lips with ease. They were soft, sweet from champagne and cupcakes, and she did little to hurry the kiss.
It was oh so tempting to make this into an actual lip-locking session, and it almost crossed that territory. Lena was determined to take her time, deepening it with a quiet, teasing moan meant for only her ears.
“I love you too,” she whispered, giving her one final little kiss on the lips – and cleaning this tiny smudge of chocolate from it with a light sweep of her tongue – before pulling away. “Hope that motivated you enough.”
Kara was dazed for a few moments after they parted, and for those few moments, dessert was the last thing on her mind. “Oh yeah,” she breathed, “yep, that–yeah. Very motivated.” She shook herself out of the daze, and with a look of determination, scooped up Lena’s spoon (because it was closest) to dig into the remainder of her dessert.
“Give me thirty seconds,” she declared, “and I’ll fly us home to work on your cardio.”