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Kara’s going to blame the fact that her kitchen counter is currently covered in food, for not realising Lena is no longer in the room with her. One moment she’d been behind her, next minute Kara had turned around, with her mouth full, expecting to be chastised, only to find herself alone.
“Lena?” Kara calls, even as she listens across her apartment to find her best friend. She locates her, in her own bedroom, heart beating slightly faster than usual. Not enough that has Kara fearing for her life but enough that she immediately follows the sound to the source.
Kara stops as soon as she spots her, her own heart jumping in her chest. It does that every time she sees her now, the little skip, no matter how much Kara tries to stop it. Lena makes her feel things she’s never felt before.
“What are you doing?” Kara asks, catching Lena’s eye in the mirror she’s in front of.
“Does my outfit look okay?” Lena asks, pulling on the hem of her sweater, twisting as she does. Kara’s not sure why but Lena’s heart picks up again, so at least Kara knows that danger isn’t imminent, whatever nerves Lena is experiencing is personal.
With permission to look, Kara allows her eyes to drop briefly, admiring the cut of Lena’s jeans, the way they hug her thighs, the way her sweater sits loose and comfortable on her body.
Kara loves all of Lena’s looks, her business look with her blazers and skirts and blouses that always have Kara’s heart racing. She loves the dresses she wears to galas or to work sometimes too, the way they sit tight on her body, the way they show every curve, and if Kara’s lucky, some skin too.
There’s a particular backless one that Kara loves, that had very much tested her self control with how much she’d wanted to kiss her way down Lena’s back, see if her skin feels as soft as it looks.
And oh, Rao, don’t even get her started on Lena’s suits, she’d almost had a heart attack the first time she’d seen her in one.
But none of them inspire the feeling that sits in her chest now, a warmth and happiness that has Kara wanting to just wrap her arms around Lena, has her wanting to press her face into Lena’s neck, inhale her sweet scent as she holds her, so soft, in her arms.
All of this races through Kara’s mind in a moment, not letting her eyes linger on Lena’s body. Friends don’t stare like that.
Kara steps closer. “Of course, it does, what’s wrong?”
“It’s not too casual?”
“…too casual for dinner?”
Lena meets her eyes again in the mirror, Kara can see the nerves in them now that she’s close. “For meeting Eliza.”
Realisation dawns on Kara. Eliza had called earlier saying she was unexpectedly going to be in the city so Kara invited her to dinner with the superfriends. She didn’t realise it’d be a big deal for Lena meeting Eliza, even though she’s really excited for her mother to meet Lena. “Is that why you’re nervous, because you’re meeting Eliza?”
Lena avoids her eyes this time. “I’ve never met anyone’s mother before, not like this. You’re my best friend, I don’t want her to hate me, or for anything to come between us.”
Kara’s own eyes watch the way Lena’s fingers twist together in front of her. She’s never met anyone’s mother before either. She doesn’t think meeting Lillian counts.
“At least we know it’ll go better than when I met your mother.”
Kara catches the smile that graces Lena’s lips, counts it as a small win.
“Here’s hoping.”
Kara laughs, closing the rest of the space between until she’s hovering just behind Lena, head over her shoulder, any closer and they’d be touching. She can feel the warmth emanating from Lena and it’s intoxicating.
Lena’s heart jumps again, Kara tells herself it’s still the nerves and definitely not because of her proximity.
“You don’t think I should go home and change?”
“You look great, I promise,” Kara says, eyes on Lena’s in the mirror again. If they both turned their heads, she’d be close enough that she’d be able to see the grey in Lena’s eyes. She keeps looking straight ahead, this is safer. “And you definitely don’t have to worry about meeting Eliza, she already loves you.”
Kara sees Lena’s mouth open, about to protest, so she hurries to continue.
“I know for a fact she does, she told me herself.”
“She told you she loves me?” Lena looks skeptical.
“Well, not in as many words, but I know she’s very excited to meet you, she did tell me that much. Apparently, I talk about you a lot, she said it felt like she knew you already.” Kara’s cheeks heat with her admission. “And even if that wasn’t the case, even if I’d told Eliza nothing about you, it wouldn’t take her long to realise how amazing you are. It took one meeting with for me to know you’re someone special.
“You’re absolutely incredible, you have the biggest heart of anyone I know. You’re so smart, you’ve done so much good with L-Corp in the last couple of years even though you’re the youngest CEO they’ve ever had. You are so kind and loving and funny and I know Eliza’s going to see all of that immediately, she’s going to see how great you are, she’s going to see what I see in you.”
Lena shuts her eyes for a moment and swallows. Kara watches the bob of her throat, eyes lingering on the freckle that she has the inexplicable urge to press her lips to.
“And you know what?” Kara asks.
Lena’s eyes open, meeting Kara’s again. She doesn’t look so scared any more, there’s a different emotion in her eyes that Kara can’t quite identify.
“What?
“Even if she doesn’t like you, even if she hated you, that wouldn’t change anything between us. I love you, you are so so important to me, and absolutely nothing in the world is going to change how I feel about you.”
“You’re the most important person in my life too, that’s why I don’t want to mess this up.”
“You won’t,” Kara smiles. “I promise. Plus, you handled meeting Alex just fine and Alex loves you now too. Meeting Eliza is going to be a piece of cake compared to that.”
“I guess that’s true,” Lena smiles. “Thank you.”
Lena turns her head to the side, presses a kiss to Kara’s cheek. It startles her for a moment, the feel of warm lips on her cheek. She can see the way Lena’s eyes slip closed, and then Kara’s do too, as Lena lingers, her lips so soft that it has Kara yearning for more, yearning to feel how soft those lips would feel against her own.
Kara’s smiling by the time lips leave her cheek, the rush of cold air a stark contrast to the heat before.
“What was that for?” Kara asks, this time turning her head to meet Lena’s eyes, wanting to see her in person, not a reflection. She’s so close now, and Kara was right before, this isn’t safe, this just makes her want to lean forwards, for Lena to kiss her again, but this time on the lips.
“For being you.”
Kara feels the words wash over her face. She should step back, step away, make a bit more space between them.
She doesn’t.
“Maybe I should be ‘me’ more often then, if it means you’ll kiss me,” Kara jokes. She thinks this is what Alex means when she says she flirts with Lena, but Lena is smiling so it doesn’t matter.
Kara could press her own kiss to Lena’s cheek, friends do that, right? Because Lena’s dimples are right there and they’re so cute and she’s so close and Kara is struggling to remember all the reasons she hasn’t asked Lena out yet.
Kara doesn’t get the chance to debate the pros and cons of kissing her best friend, on the cheek or on the lips, because Lena makes the decision for her. She sees it, the way Lena’s eyes drop to her lips, knows exactly what she’s going to do as she leans forward, even if Kara doesn’t believe it herself.
But she can see it, the intent in Lena’s eyes, as she closes the already small gap between them.
Kara’s breath catches when lips press against hers, ever so softly. She doesn’t move, too scared to do anything in case Lena pulls away, too scared to do anything in case this is all some dream she never wants to wake up from.
But Rao, if it isn’t the best kiss of Kara’s life. Nothing has ever felt so right as Lena’s lips against her own, nothing has ever felt as good as knowing that Lena wants to kiss her too.
It’s like she was made for this, made to be with Lena. Something clicked the moment they first met, something that Kara doesn’t know how to explain except for the fact that it feels like they belong together.
Up until this very moment, Kara thought they belonged together as friends, and that’s all they’d ever be.
But now Lena is kissing her, and it’s just a shy press of mouths, but it’s everything.
Cool air hits her lips as Lena pulls away. Kara opens her eyes, finds her gaze locked on Lena’s lips as a pink tongue darts out to lick them. Kara is hypnotised, can already feel herself leaning forwards, like a magnet dragging her in.
The spell breaks though, when Lena groans.
“Oh, God.”
Kara’s eyes shoot up to green ones, dread replacing the butterflies that had been dancing in her stomach. She bites her lip, that’s not how you want the love of your life to react to a kiss. “Was it that bad?”
“No!” Lena says, turning fully to face Kara. “I…that wasn’t bad at all. I just realised, that if this,” Lena waves her hand between the two of them. “Becomes a thing, then today I’m not just meeting my best friend’s mother, but potentially my future girlfriend’s mother, which is a whole lot scarier.”
Kara feels the relief wash through her like a wave, cleaning out any doubt and fear, leaving her feeling light and bubbly. “If it makes any difference, Eliza already knows I have a massive crush on you and wholeheartedly approves. Every time I talk to her, she asks if I’ve asked you out yet.”
“Really?”
The hope in Lena’s eyes hits Kara square in the chest. If it wasn’t obvious from the kiss that Lena likes her, it would be now.
“Really. So, do you want to have dinner with me tomorrow night?”
Lena ducks her head, shy and completely adorable. Lena kissed her but this is what makes her cheeks turn red? “I’d really like that.”
Kara’s smile stretches wide and happy, unable to contain her excitement at Lena accepting her question. If she knew it’d be this easy, she would’ve asked out her friend months ago.
“Can we keep this between us though, just for now, just for tonight?”
“Of course.” Kara tangles their hands between them. “Anything you want, anything you’re comfortable with.”
“What if I wanted to kiss you again, before everyone else arrives?” Lena asks, biting her lip. Kara wants to be the one to sink her teeth into that red flesh instead.
“One thing you should know about me, if you’re going to be my girlfriend, is that I’m never going to deny you kisses.”
Lena laughs with a shake of her head. Kara wants to hear that sound for the rest of forever.
Kara ducks forward, because now she can, she doesn’t have to argue with herself about how much of a bad idea it would be to kiss Lena, because it’s not, and she presses her lips to dimples she’s completely in love with.
“I meant-“ Lena starts, when Kara pulls away from soft skin she already knows she’ll never get tired of kissing.
Kara cuts her off with her lips this time, she can hear the way Lena’s heart picks up speed, just like her own does.
Hands cup her cheeks as Lena leans closer, as a warm body presses into her own. Kara knows she’s never going to be the same again, not now that she knows how Lena feels against her, not now that she knows what Lena’s mouth tastes like.
Lena has to wipe her remaining lipstick off her face while Kara has to do the same with her own when they finally part. Judging by the look Lena gives her, she very much likes seeing her own lipstick on Kara’s lips.
Kara likes seeing the evidence of their kiss on Lena’s face too, but they have to look normal, presentable, when everyone else arrives, which should be very soon.
“You okay?” Kara asks.
“I won’t deny, I’m still nervous about meeting Eliza, but I’m also really really good.”
“Yeah? Funny that,” Kara grins. “So am I. I always knew kissing you would be amazing but that was something else entirely, and I very much hope that you’ll stay after everyone leaves later so I can kiss you some more because I already want to kiss you again and it’s going to be torture not being able to.”
Lena presses her lips together, trying not to smile. “You went months without kissing me before tonight.”
“Yes, I did, and it was torture.”
Lena laughs again, Kara powerless as she presses a quick kiss to Lena’s lips. She can’t believe that she gets to do this now, can’t believe that Lena wants to kiss her too.
“Later, I promise,” Lena says, giving her one last kiss of her own.
Kara can’t wait.
(Eliza loves Lena of course, there was never any doubt that she wouldn’t. She does keep sending them knowing looks though but Kara’s not sure if it’s because of her already admitted crush or because she knows.
Alex keeps giving them looks too, but more confused than Eliza’s ones. As soon as Lena leaves tonight, Kara is going to call Alex and tell her what happened because she’s absolutely dying to share the good news with Alex, to tell her everything including just how good Lena is at kissing.
Maggie definitely knows, there’s no doubt about that, and Kara thinks she probably would’ve figured it out anyway, she’s always been a lot more perceptive than Alex, but this time it wasn’t her good instincts and detective skills that lead her to this discovery, it was the fact that Kara thought she was being sneaky when she pressed a quick kiss to Lena’s mouth when they both thought no one was watching. Maggie just happened to look up at the right time. At least her gasp distracted everyone enough that no one else saw anything.
James and Winn, of course, know nothing.
But none of that matters, it doesn’t matter who knows and who doesn’t, all that matters is that Lena knows that Kara likes her and Kara knows that Lena likes her and that they both now have a chance to be happy, together).